WICHITA — It looks like a third PetSmart is coming to Wichita.
Sources say the company is looking to build a more than 26,000-square-foot store at One Kellogg Place at Kellogg and Greenwich.
A company spokeswoman says she can’t comment until a lease is signed.
There are already PetSmart sites at 3615 N. Rock Road and at 533 S. Tracy.
WICHITA — Observant readers have noticed some activity at a couple of vacant buildings and are wondering what’s up.
Sadly, not much.
There was a promising-looking construction trailer in front of the former Rose Bowl West at 520 N. West St. recently, but a deal for a new tenant fell through.
On the east side, there’s been some activity at the former Sportsman’s Warehouse building at One Kellogg Place.
There’s a Halloween shop that will be opening there, but only temporarily.
Another reader was doing some checking into Chick-fil-A and whether it really is bringing a freestanding restaurant to Central and Rock in addition to the small Chick-fil-A at Wichita State University.
Chick-fil-A has confirmed it for Have You Heard?, as have the property owners, but apparently no one has told the customer service folks at the restaurant chain.
WICHITA — Lots of people dream of owning their own restaurants to create their favorite dishes for others.
That’s not why Mike Nicholas is opening Brats n Hots.
“I’m not doing it because I’ve always been a hot dog lover or anything like that,” he says.
Nicholas is starting the business to then franchise it. He wanted to create a franchise with low start-up costs to attract others.
He’s had success in the hospice business with Promises Kept Hospices, and now he’s taking those business skills to the restaurant industry.
“I guess I consider myself more of a business person than a restaurateur.”
The first Brats n Hots will open this spring in the strip center on South Greenwich across from One Kellogg Place where Walmart is.
Nicholas says he’s targeting March 1, “but that means probably April 1.”
Brats n Hots will be a Chipotle-style concept where customers can order at a counter and look at what ingredients they might like on their brats and hot dogs.
There will be 30 toppings available, such as sauerkraut and grilled onions.
“The list just goes on and on,” Nicholas says.
WICHITA — California-based Panda Express has chosen a second Wichita site.
The first Panda will open in early December at One Kellogg Place on East Kellogg where Walmart is.
The second will be on Maize Road in front of Lowe’s.
“It’s the logical place for us to go,” says Susan Flesher, Panda’s real estate manager.
She likes the new retail stores, especially big ones like Lowe’s, opening in the area.
The restaurant will locate on the second pad site north of the Lowe’s entrance.
Five Guys Burgers and Fries, Long John Silver’s Freshside Grille and Cinnamon’s Deli are on the pad sites to the south.
The west-side Panda will be 2,700 square feet, which is a bit bigger than the east side’s 2,448 square feet.
Flesher says the extra space is for some expanded offerings, though it’s not yet clear what those offerings will be.
Leisa Lowry of J.P. Weigand & Sons handled the deal for the space and is representing Panda in the market.
Look for the west-side Panda to open this spring.
WICHITA — There’s more to the Petland story than owner Brad Bockus revealed earlier this week.
Turns out he’s married to Colleen Bradley, whose Cappuccino Inc. previously owned the franchise at One Kellogg Place at Kellogg and Greenwich.
“What can I say?” Bockus says. “It’s like a lot of other small businesses out there. The economy was just staggering to the point where Cappuccino closed in May.”
Bockus says his wife won’t be involved in the business.
“It’s me running this place now.”
So why reopen it?
“I’m a little crazy.”
He’s also making some changes, including renegotiating the lease.
WICHITA — After weeks and weeks of the corporate office at Petland saying it didn’t know what was going on with the store here, there’s now an answer.
But not from corporate.
The previous owner closed the store at One Kellogg Place at Kellogg and Greenwich this spring.
Now, Brad Bockus, who is retired from the Air Force, is reopening it.
“I love animals,” says Bockus, who has a cat, a dog, “a few fish and a little mouse.”
The 7,000-square-foot store will remain mostly the same, though it will no longer sell fish.
It will sell bunnies, ferrets, hamsters, dogs and some kittens.
The store also will carry pet products and premium pet food.
Bockus hopes to open sometime in August.
WICHITA — Panda Express has chosen One Kellogg Place on East Kellogg where Wal-Mart is for its first Wichita site.
Last year, Have You Heard? reported the California-based chain of more than 1,300 restaurants wanted to come to the Wichita area.
The first Panda will be in a freestanding 2,449-square-foot building with a drive-through between Pizza Hut and IHOP.
It will be ready in the fall.
“We just like the energy that surrounds that area,” says Susan Flesher, Panda’s real estate manager.
She specifically points to the nearby traffic and daytime population.
“We just felt like that was a good first site.”