“We are excited to continue to grow in the Dayton area and bring Raising Canes to the Huber Heights community,” Eric Ongaro, president of Raising Canes Ohio (RCO), told this news outlet late Monday. “We recently acquired property and are actively working with community leaders on a plan to develop our third Dayton-area restaurant, with a goal to open sometime in 2020.”
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Huber Heights Mayor Jeff Gore had announced Raising Cane’s plans in a Facebook post on Oct. 4, but Raising Cane’s officials were silent on their plans at the time, perhaps because the real estate transaction that would pave the way for the new restaurant had not yet been finalized. Plans call for the new restaurant to open in a former PNC bank branch at 7841 Old Troy Pike. That bank branch shut down in April.
Robert Zavakos — real estate broker and senior vice president of the commercial real estate firm NAI Bergman, who represented the seller, PNC Bank, in the Raising Cane’s property transaction — said the real estate sale closed on Friday, Oct. 11, with a sales price of $1 million.
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Raising Cane’s Ohio’s reluctance to confirm the plans prior to the closing of the real estate deal is understandable. In 2016, the company submitted plans to the city of Beavercreek for what would have been its first Dayton-area location just south of the Mall at Fairfield Commons in Beavercreek, but those plans collapsed in part because of an internal family struggle among the prospective sellers of the land on which the restaurant was to be built.
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The company went on to open its first Dayton-area location on Ohio 725 east of the Dayton Mall, and later opened its second Dayton-area location across from the Greene in Beavercreek. Earlier this year, RCO’s plans to open a location on Far Hills Avenue in Kettering were dropped after opposition from neighbors.
RCO President Ongaro singled out the Huber Heights community for praise.
“The Huber Heights location was very interesting to us, as it boasts a very diverse area with a great foundation of community resources that align with our commitment to our community involvement pillars,” Ongaro said in an email. “Those pillars include education, entrepreneurship, feeding the hungry and more.”
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The new Huber Heights restaurant will create roughly 75 jobs, “about a third of which will be full-time crew,” Ongaro said.
The RCO president invited Raising Cane’s fans to “follow us on our social-media platforms to find out more info about career opportunities, community support and opening information.”
***ORIGINAL STORY (Oct. 7, 2019)***
Huber Heights will be getting a new Raising Cane's Chicken Fingers restaurant and a new Starbucks within a block of each other on Old Troy Pike, Huber Heights Mayor Jeff Gore announced in a Facebook post.
It would be the third Dayton-area location for Raising Cane’s, which just last week formally withdrew its proposed plans for a Kettering restaurant along Far Hills Avenue. The new Huber Heights Raising Cane’s will open in a former PNC bank branch at 7841 Old Troy Pike, Gore said. That bank branch closed in April.
>> RELATED: Raising Cane's will no longer seek Kettering site after neighbor opposition
The new Starbucks will be built on the tract of land that formerly housed Cadillac Jacks at 7720 Old Troy Pike, the mayor said. Plans for the new coffee shop, which will include a drive-through, have been submitted to the city, Gore said. The existing structure will be demolished to pave the way for the new Stabucks, the mayor said.
Huber Heights Assistant City Manager Scott Falkowski said this morning, Oct. 7 that both Starbucks and Raising Cane’s submitted artist renderings Friday for zoning approval of the new businesses.
“Both of these sites, just south of I-70, had businesses that closed, and the opportunity was there for redevelopment,” Falkowski told this news outlet. “It’s a positive sign that these businesses are looking to grow within the Huber Heights community.”
Credit: City of Huber Heights
Credit: City of Huber Heights
Public hearings on the proposals are scheduled to occur at the Huber Heights Planning Commission meeting on Oct. 29, Falkowski said. The planning commission will make a recommendation to city council, which will decide on final approval.
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This news outlet has reached out to Raising Cane’s and Starbucks officials and will update this story with any new information.
The Louisiana-based Raising Cane’s Chicken Fingers operates restaurants on Ohio 725 east of the Dayton Mall and in Beavercreek across from The Greene Town Center. Both restaurants opened to long lines of customers that persisted for weeks.
>> RELATED: Starbucks opens Englewood coffee shop near I-70 and Ohio 48
The chain prides itself on a limited menu and a simple concept, focused on chicken fingers, which it says are made “fresh, never frozen,” marinated for 24 hours, then battered and cooked to order. Also featured on the menu are crinkle-cut fries, cole slaw, Texas Toast and sauces that are made in-house daily.
>> PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Raising Cane’s sets opening date for first Dayton-area restaurant (May 2017)
Seattle-based Starbucks has been expanding its footprint across Dayton’s suburbs in recent years, including a new shop on Ohio 48/North Main Street in Englewood that opened in 2017.
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