LaGRANGE – Construction has begun on the newest addition to LaGrange’s restaurant selection with the demolition of the old Ryan’s building.

A new Firehouse Subs is slated to open next to the mall and the new Aspen Dental office on Sept. 7, according to a Firehouse Subs spokesperson.

The sandwich franchise headquartered in Jacksonville, Fla., currently has more than 1,030 locations ranging from the United States to Puerto Rico to Canada and is most notable for its involvement with community first responders, going all the way back to its firefighting founders Chris and Robin Sorensen.

“I think that’s good,” said City Manager Meg Kelsey during the last city council meeting. “I hope that’s a sign of more commercial development, restaurant development in our town, so I’m encouraged by that and hopeful to see future announcements in front of the mall soon.”

The building permit for the restaurant was approved in November. The store owner could not be reached for comment.

Reach Alicia B. Hill at alicia.hill@lagrangenews.com or at 706-884-7311, Ext. 2154.

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Update: Hull Property Group announced that the Firehouse Subs would be located next to Aspen Dental, not in the former Ryan’s location, and while business is expected to come into that spot, the group is not ready to announce any names at this time.