East Sunshine Panera set to open

Panera Bread franchisee Traditional Bakery Inc. next week is scheduled to open a replacement Sunshine Street cafe.

The 5,000-square-foot shop at 2641 E. Sunshine St. is scheduled to launch Jan. 19, followed by a Springfield Area Chamber of Commerce ribbon-cutting ceremony on Jan. 23, according to a news release.

The store replaces the franchisee’s nearby Panera Bread in the Southern Hills Shopping Center, which is slated to close today. Traditional Bakery spokeswoman Claudine Stark said the new Sunshine Street store would employ 65, including the previous cafe’s employees.

JGTS LLC, a real estate company co-owned by Traditional Bakery’s Jim and Gaynell Magers, bought the nearly 1.3-acre land at 2641 E. Sunshine in early 2016. The restaurant built by Owasso, Oklahoma-based Limestone Construction LLC and designed by Wichita, Kansas-based LK Architecture Inc. had an estimated cost of $800,000 to $1 million.

Like its cafe on 4100 S. Campbell Ave. - which also replaced a nearby restaurant when it opened in 2015 - the new Sunshine Street Panera Bread will have drive-thru service. It also will have newly launched delivery service. Traditional Bakery started delivery in October.

Traditional Bakery operates five Panera Bread cafes in Springfield.