Document text
Panera Bread construction delayed By Nick Morgan Updated: Mar 24, 2022 01:02 PM A A Andy Atkinson / Mail TribuneCrews have completed all framing on the new Panera Bread being built at the corner of Garfield Street and Highway 99 in Medford, but delays getting an HVAC unit will push construction of the new restaurant anchoring Stewart Meadows Village into the second half of this year. A 2020 rendering of Medford’s Panera Bread location under construction at the corner of Highway 99 and Garfield Street. Challenges including a delay getting an HVAC unit will push construction at the Stewart Meadows Village project into the second half of this year. [Kistler Small White architectural rendering, via KOGAP Enterprises] Owing to the same challenges impacting builders across the industry, construction of one of Medford’s most anticipated chain restaurants is behind schedule. The Panera Bread location under construction in south Medford won’t be finished within the first half of this year, as previously planned, according to the restaurant’s builder, KOGAP Enterprises. KOGAP Chief Operating Officer Brent Hackwell, however, is confident that the restaurant will be finished by the end of the year. “It’s definitely going to be in 2022,” said Hackwell, adding that it “could be much sooner” than December. Construction began late last year during the thick of what Hackwell described as “one of the most challenging times” he’d ever seen in the construction industry. “This is our best guess, and we hope we can still do that,” Hackwell said. Although contractors got their orders in early for many of the building materials used in the project such as lumber, crews face supply chain challenges that are holding up construction of the restaurant. “The major issue holding us back,” Hackwell said, is an extended delay for its heating, ventilation and air conditioning system. “We used to be able to get these things in two to three weeks,” Hackwell said. Now HVAC units are up to 40 weeks out. The HVAC delays impact other crews, according to Hackwell. For instance, roofers can’t complete their work on the project until the roof-mounted unit is complete. “It’s a challenge, it’s an absolute challenge,” Hackwell said. “The pandemic didn’t help us out.” From January through February, the spike in coronavirus cases “was just brutal on us in our industry,” Hackwell said. As of this week, crews had completed all framing and are working of exterior finishes and roofing where they can. “We’re working on the exterior envelope at this point,” Hackwell said. The restaurant will anchor the new Stewart Meadows Village development near the intersection of Highway 99 and Garfield Street. At least one other chain restaurant has explored construction in the development. Chick-Fil-A submitted a pre-application to the city of Medford’s Land Development Committee to build a drive-thru location at the northwest corner of the Stewart Meadows Village project, according to a Feb. 16 meeting agenda provided by Medford spokeswoman Kristina Johnsen. Johnsen said in an email that a proposal has not yet been submitted to the city’s Site Plan and Architectural Commission, meaning that Chick-Fil-A has not officially applied for what would be the chain restaurant’s second Medford location. On Wednesday, the company provided a statement that said, “We are always evaluating potential new locations. ... We would very much like to have more restaurants in the Medford area, but we have no new locations to confirm at this time.” Reach web editor Nick Morgan at 541-776-4471 or [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @MTwebeditor.