"The worst kept secret in town" is finally out, according to Weyburn Mayor Debra Button. The City has officially announced the creation of a new eatery, popular restaurant-chain Boston Pizza, in Weyburn.
"We are very excited to welcome our newest restaurant, Boston Pizza," said Button.
The restaurant will be constructed at 35 Riverview Drive (formerly Industrial Lane), beside Weimer's Hometown Furniture, in the Riverfront Market area.
Button said that a lot of people worked very hard to bring this restaurant to the community and that she has, personally, been trying to entice the development to Weyburn for quite some time.
"It's been on our radar for about a year and a half," admitted Button.
Button said that although Weyburn has a lot of good restaurants right now, the well-known franchise will give residents more choices and increase tourism.
"Certainly, the location will enhance the downtown shopping environment and bring people off of Highway 39," said Button.
Plans have moved swiftly since representatives of the City first met with Area Developer for Boston Pizza Gary Tremblay six months ago.
"We always thought Weyburn would be a good market for us," said Tremblay. "A good site hasn't presented itself until now."
Tremblay said that he and his partners in the development wanted the restaurant to be located along a main highway, but still be close to the downtown area.
"This location met all our perimeters," said Tremblay.
This will be the 14th Boston Pizza that Tremblay has developed. His company, Tremblay Family Trust, owns the rights to distribute the franchise in Saskatchewan.
"I've been in the restaurant business for 52 years," said Tremblay. "I've owned most of the Boston Pizza's in the province for several years and built all but one in Saskatoon."
The new restaurant will be 5,780 square-feet and include seating for about 200 patrons. The plans include two outdoor patios, a separate restaurant and lounge area, and a 58-stall parking lot.
Tremblay said that plans for the Boston Pizza are still in the designing stage. An owner/operator for the new restaurant has not been finalized yet, but will be in the upcoming months.
"The requirements we are looking at for an owner/operator is they have to be involved in the community," said Tremblay.
Tremblay said that he hopes to have the Boston Pizza open by January 1, 2011.
City Council approved the application for the Boston Pizza restaurant at their April 12 meeting.
The restaurant is not the only new business developing in Weyburn. Manager of Community Services Doug Mulhall said that he is speaking with developers from across the country "pretty much all the time" and that several upcoming businesses are in the final stages of the decision-making process.
"Stuff is on the horizon," said Mulhall. "It's going to be a busy spring for construction again this year."
Non-residential construction is on the rise in Saskatchewan. The province saw the second-highest percentage increase in the country (behind New Brunswick) in the first quarter of 2010, up 6 percent since 2009.
Saskatchewan's building permits increased by 65 percent between February and March - the highest percentage increase in Canada.
