THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT 
              Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: Wednesday, October 9, 1996            TAG: 9610090386
SECTION: LOCAL                   PAGE: B1   EDITION: FINAL 
SOURCE: BY ALEX MARSHALL, STAFF WRITER 
DATELINE: NORFOLK                           LENGTH:   47 lines

DOWNTOWN EATERY TO BE BUILT WITHOUT CITY'S HELP

Call it a milestone.

A small Chinese restaurant, named Wing Lee's Grill, is set to be constructed on a vacant lot downtown on a side street off Granby Street. The City Council approved the application Tuesday.

Why the big deal? Because this is the first new construction downtown without city help since the building of new office towers ended in the late 1980s, city officials say.

It's the kind of new private investment Norfolk has hoped would be stimulated by the many city downtown projects built or under construction - from the Mac-Arthur Center, to Nauticus, to the new branch of Tidewater Community College.

The restaurant will be placed between Bugatti's, an after-hours club, and another building on College Place. The site is across the street from La Galleria, an upscale Italian restaurant.

The owner of the new restaurant, and the two adjacent properties, is Anthony Garguilo. The local restaurateur also owns La Galleria and Il Giardino, another upscale Italian restaurant in Virginia Beach.

Mark Gros, who represents Garguilo, said the new restaurant was prompted by the scheduled opening in January of the new downtown branch of TCC, whose principal buildings are near the restaurant site.

Other private development has taken place downtown, but most has concentrated on renovating existing buildings. They include the Dumbwaiter restaurant on Tazewell Street, the Life Building on Main Street, and several buildings in the 100 block of Granby Street.

``This was an opportunity where we filled in a gap, and we didn't lose anything to gain something,'' said R. Brian Townsend, manager of development services in Norfolk.

Gros said they expect to start construction in November and open in February. Gros was accompanied Tuesday by Garguilo's attorney, Philip R. Trapani Jr., son of City Attorney Philip R. Trapani. ILLUSTRATION: Photo by MIKE HEFFNER/The Virginian-Pilot

This empty lot on College Place in downtown Norfolk will be the site

of Wing Lee's Grill, which is scheduled to open in February.

Staff map

Area shown: Wing Lee's Grill by CNB