Black Label Car Care has been at 219 N. Main St., Suite A, in Goddard, for three years. Now owner Chris Kerschen is working with chiropractor and part-time real estate developer Joey Vrana to occupy a larger, more visible facility that Vrana plans to build on the southwest corner of Second Street and Main in Goddard.
Jaime Green
The Wichita Eagle
Real estate has been a side hustle for Goddard chiropractor Joey Vrana for several years.
His current project — and what would be his most ambitious effort to date — is a 4,500-square-foot commercial building planned for the southwest corner of Second Street and Main in Goddard.
Black Label Car Care has plans to move to the new building, both Vrana and Black Label owner Chris Kerschen confirmed on Sept. 14.
Vrana was scheduled to present a preliminary site plan for the building, with an address of 217 N. Main St., at the Sept. 14 Goddard Planning Commission meeting. The building could get site plan approval as soon as the planning commission’s October meeting, said Goddard City Manager Craig Crossette.
If the site plan is approved by Goddard, the Metropolitan Area Building and Construction Department would need to approve a site plan summary, and the city of Goddard would need to issue a building permit before construction begins.
Vrana will usher his project through the planning process, but he has no intention of making real estate his full-time gig — at least not now.
He has owned Vrana Chiropractic & Acupuncture in Goddard for 15 years. His wife, Devin, is a chiropractor in Wichita. They have five children, including a 21-year-old who is attending chiropractic school.
Future plans for his chiropractic business depend, at least in part, on what his son decides to do after he gets out of chiropractic school, Joey Vrana said.
“I can see myself staying in chiropractic care for another 10 years,” he said.
Meanwhile, he said, he will continue to develop land he and his wife own when it makes sense to do so. And that’s what led to his decision to create a new space for Black Label Car Care in the downtown business district.
“There’s value on the Main Street lots that I own (because) I don’t have to add parking infrastructure,” he said. “If I go out on 54, I’ve got to add parking lots. That adds to the cost so much.”
He declined to disclose the estimated cost of the new Black Label building, but he said if it goes well he plans to develop a building across the street on land he owns with business partner Jordan Ungles.
The building being planned would almost double the space Black Label now occupies, but the extra space would only be part of the benefit of making the move, Kerschen said.
“I’m also looking at being in a more visible area,” he said. “Most people don’t know I’m here, and I’ve been here for three years.”
Kerschen describes Black Label as a high-end paint protection business. It puts clear film wraps and ceramic coatings on vehicles and also offers window tinting.
He opened the business in 2018 as a side hustle and went full time three years ago. He has one full-time employee.
In addition to Kerschen thinking the new space would be a better fit for his business, buildings that help plug holes in a community’s downtown are important to the health of the city, said Community Development Director Micah Scoggan.
“In planning vernacular, it’s called ‘missing teeth’” Scoggan said. “Filling in missing teeth is ideal. You want to show engagement and vibrancy so other people want to develop downtown. Infilling with commercial development on Main Street is incredibly important for the city.”
Vrana plans to break ground on the project by the first of the year. He is budgeting 12 months to complete construction and has a goal of having Black Label occupy the space within 18 months.
Kerschen said he hopes Black Label makes the move, but the deal is not yet final.