The fate of the store, once a post office and a restaurant but closed for several years, has been the subject of a long-running dispute between the Wawa chain and some neighbors and preservationists because Wawa wants to build a 12-pump gas station and store on the site.

Wawa has been trying to build on the site since 2001, but nothing has happened because of local opposition and environmental concerns over a stream there that brought the Army Corps of Engineers into the dispute.

Claudio DiGiamberardino owns the store, located at the intersection of Route 322 and Bondsville Road, and the 1.4 acres of land surrounding the structure. He currently holds a demolition permit for the property and his attorney, Louis Colagreco, says he is willing to sell to Wawa.

The latest wrinkle in the saga is a proposal that the General Store building be put on the market for several weeks - how long is yet to be determined - to see if anyone other than Wawa wants to buy it, restore it and operate it.

Wawa spokeswoman Lori Bruce declined to say whether the company would continue to pursue the General Store if someone else made an offer to buy and maintain the building. She added that in the past no one had come forward and offered to buy and preserve it.

Everyone involved in the issue will put their cards on the table at a Tuesday meeting called by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. The invitation-only session will be held at the East Brandywine Township building to discuss the recommendation of a marketing period for the property, made by the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation, a federal agency whose role is, well, advisory.

A spokesman for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' Philadelphia District, Khaalid Walls, said Tuesday's meeting would focus in part on the recommendation of an eight-week marketing period for the property.

"No final determination has been made on the marketing period. We have a recommendation from the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation, and we are considering their comments," Walls said.

East Brandywine Township Manager Scott Piersol said the corps might also decide at the meeting whether or not to issue a permit to move an existing stream that runs through the property.

Neighbors Deke and Bill Inslee own three buildings next to the General Store and do not support the demolition plans.

"We'll live with it one way or another. This could have the potential to be great if they took the General Store and gave it a secondary use," said Bill Inslee.

Wawa's Bruce said in a written response that after a structural assessment of the building, Wawa estimated it would cost about $500,000 to renovate or relocate it.

"Wawa was ready and willing to fund a portion of that expense to save the building, but no other individual or entity [including any of the entities that are now part of the Corps of Engineers process] were willing to join Wawa in that endeavor," Bruce wrote.