Italian Centre Shop owner and McCauley resident Teresa Spinelli has made what she believes is a bad business decision – but for a good reason.

She recently purchased The Piazza, the commercial strip mall located at 108th Avenue and 95th Street. She paid an undisclosed amount, and will only admit that she paid more than the original purchase price of the property. “I don’t want to share what I paid, because it was not a good business decision. But I paid enough so that all the investors were left whole,” she says.

The Piazza was purchased in January 2020 by the McCauley Development Cooperative, which formed in 2019 and was made up of area residents who wanted to encourage businesses in the strip mall that were a better fit for the community in terms of values and safety issues. Spinelli was part of this initiative and was one of its leaders.

However, these good intentions were not enough to make the project financially viable. “The building had a mortgage and there were a couple of empty spots that we were not able to fill,” Spinelli explains. To further complicate matters, in March 2020 - only a couple of months after the purchase - COVID-19 hit.

Members had raised $1.1 million, with the remaining amount of the almost $2.9 million purchase price supported by a loan from the Social Enterprise Fund, which is operated by the Edmonton Community Foundation.

Five years later, the cooperative was on the verge of receivership. Selling the property at the original purchase price was one option, but would have resulted in a financial loss to members. Thanks to Spinelli's intervention, the members will recoup their original investments.

Another reason for Spinelli's decision to purchase The Piazza was the concern that an unknown buyer would possibly “not be a good landlord or community partner.”

The Piazza has become a hub of activity in Little Italy, featuring unique shops and services such as Paper Birch Books, Earth's Refillery Coop, True Blue Barber Shop, and Culina Famiglia. Its large, paved front area is also the setting for a number of local events such as Winter in Little Italy and the Hello Market pop-ups.

Spinelli began working towards the purchase of The Piazza in May 2025 and the sale was finalized in late October. She is currently trying to rent out the final available bay to a community-focused business and urges everyone to “please continue to support the local businesses in The Piazza!”

Paula E. Kirman is the Editor of Boyle McCauley News.