United Equities Inc., a Houston-area developer that bought and planned a development for a part of the Fry Street area, is inviting the public to a neighborhood meeting on Thursday.

The development, known on paper as Fry Street Village, encountered an obstacle in mid-December when the Denton City Council voted 4-3 against allowing a drive-through lane for a proposed CVS Pharmacy.

The project, currently a vacant lot, has been in the works since the property, bordered by Oak, Welch, Hickory and Fry streets, was bought in the summer of 2006.

The property has been the site of much debate, from the creation of new grassroots groups of neighbors and students to being a crime scene when the shell of the former Tomato pizza restaurant was burned in an arson fire.

Today, the area remains barren, awaiting the next step.

The neighborhood meeting, scheduled for 7 p.m. at the Village Church, 1106 W. Oak St., is in response to the council’s mention of the need for more input from people around the proposed development, United Equities officials said.

“We’re just trying to get some contact with the neighborhood to get some input,” said Tim Sandifer, project manager with the company, based in Bellaire, a Houston suburb.

At least 15 of the people contacted directly about the upcoming meeting have indicated they plan to attend, Sandifer said. Included on the guest list are company owner Buster Freedman and a representative from CVS Pharmacy, Jeff DeGroot.

Jack Thomson, District 3 council member, said though he had no plans to attend the meeting within his district, he expected to hear that the developer had dropped plans for a drive-through.

“I would assume that he has taken out the drive-through,” Thomson said. “I asked him [Sandifer] whether the CVS was going to be there still and he said, ‘No. That was off.’”

On Friday, Sandifer said the company had not made any changes to its development.

“We have not made any changes to our plans,” he said. “We haven’t even looked at them.”

Sandifer confirmed that, without a drive-through lane, CVS Pharmacy would not be opening in the development.

“Would I like to get a solution to the drive-through and make CVS happen? Yes,” he said.

DAWN COBB can be reached at 940-566-6879. Her e-mail address is dcobb@dentonrc.com .