What national chain is coming to this long-vacant spot on a prominent Modesto corner?
Is the third time the charm for a prominent Modesto corner that long has sought a new tenant?
The corner of Briggsmore and Orangeburg avenues has been available for lease for years, with a couple of major brands making plans to develop on site before abandoning them. Now, it appears a Dairy Queen fast-food restaurant is coming to the intersection, more than two years after the company first expressed interest in the site.
The new DQ — known for its soft-serve ice cream, burgers and more — would go into the space that years ago was home to an auto shop. That building, at 2080 Briggsmore Ave., was torn down by the city in 2018 because of transients squatting inside. The site has been empty since, fenced off by chain link.
The high-profile intersection, just off the Highway 99 Briggsmore exit, has seen its share of change over the years. In 2001, Krispy Kreme arrived with much aplomb and long lines. But four years later, the doughnut seller closed suddenly.
Three years later, in 2008, a CVS pharmacy moved into Krispy Kreme’s old space.
In the years since, the former auto shop space, which sits in front of the existing CVS and Panda Express, has had a couple of suitors.
In 2016, Popeye’s Louisiana Kitchen submitted plans to the city of Modesto to develop the site. But the development languished over the next two years and the chain went elsewhere, eventually opening a spot in Turlock earlier this year.
Then in early 2020, Dutch Bros Coffee considered the site for one of its popular drive-through kiosks. The Oregon-based coffee and specialty drink seller had picked McHenry Avenue for its first Modesto location, which opened in October. It also made plans to take over the Briggsmore Avenue site for its second city location, with a projected late 2020 or early 2021 opening.
But the company instead settled on a Carpenter Road location in west Modesto for its second spot, and that kiosk has finished construction and is set to open next month.
Modesto chief building official Oscar Diaz said the new Dairy Queen will be about 2,440 square feet, and have a drive-through. Plans were submitted to the city in July and are under review.
Dairy Queen officials said the local owner of the new DQ franchise is Puneet Dhaliwal. The site has a tentative Feb. 29, 2022, opening date set.
This will be the city’s second standalone DQ location. The first was built in 1988 at the corner of Oakdale Road and Floyd Avenue and has been operating there ever since.
