North Stonington — The new owner of the former hardware store on Wyassup Road in the village has submitted a site plan that reinvents the space, adding a nanobrewery, café and general store, selling both hardware and consignment farm goods like milk, cheese or butter.

Ron Lewis, who runs a farm in North Stonington, purchased the property a month ago. He said his attachment to the property is partly sentimental value: during his lifetime the building has supported different businesses and served many different functions for the village.

The current 2,100-square-foot building at 2 Wyassup Road was built in 1860 but the structure dates back even farther, Lewis said, and he hoped to give the building new life with an old purpose.

"It's a great place for the community (and) for the village," Lewis said. "The village used to have a lot of retail: this is the last business essentially left in the North Stonington village. In its heyday, it had everything from blacksmiths to gristmills."

He envisions the new business as "essentially a retail farmer's market." Entering from Wyassup Road, the building will have a café in the front, with seating for about a dozen people. To the left will be hardware supplies and in the back a short six- to seven-foot counter for beer tastings.

Finally, to the right there would be an area for consignment farm goods — they hope to bring refrigerators to hold goods like cheeses and milk from local farms.

Carl Johnston, a fellow North Stonington resident and former part-owner of C.C. O'Brien's in Pawcatuck, will operate the business.

Johnston said he'll likely have some family members working initially as the business gets off the ground and open only a few days a week.

"It'll probably be a Friday, Saturday (and) Sunday thing right now," he said. "They can get items on the weekend (and) don't have to run all the way to town."

The site plan will go before the Planning and Zoning Commission July 14.