Ryan Brennecke / The Bulletin

Business owner: Andy Hanna

Architect: Lenity Architecture, Salem and Bend

General contractor: Double R Builders, Bend

Details: The new home for Redmond’s Dairy Queen is nearly complete, with a target opening date of April 22.

For about four months, construction to turn the former Bank of the Cascades branch on U.S. Highway 97 and Odem Medo Way into a Dairy Queen has been underway, said Larry Wright, branch manager of Lenity Architecture.

“We used the existing exterior shell and completely gutted the interior, everything down to dirt,” Wright said. “We had to modify the exterior to match Dairy Queen corporate standards.”

The remodel of the 3,800-square-foot building cost about $550,000, he said.

Andy Hanna, the owner of the Redmond Dairy Queen, said April 17 will be the last day of operation for the Dairy Queen at 704 S.W. Sixth St.

Hanna said he wanted to move the business next to the highway and have it in a nicer, more modern location.

He bought the Dairy Queen about four years ago. Since then, he said, the restaurant lost some of its parking after the construction of the Jo-Ann Fabric and Craft store. He said space limitations also make the drive-thru a challenge.

“We’ve grown considerably. We’re doing twice as much business as when we bought it,” he said. “We were bumping up against the capacity at the location.”

In its new location, the Dairy Queen is going to be nearly twice the size, he said. He plans to double his staff, bringing in about 35 new employees.

— Rachael Rees, The Bulletin