Five Years in the Making: Johnson City Dunkin’ Finally Open

The long-running saga of developing a new Dunkin' doughnut shop near Johnson City has concluded with the business starting operations.

BAPA Network of Horseheads had been planning to develop the Dunkin' location at Main Street and Oakdale Road in Westover for the past five years.

The company, which operates many Dunkin' franchised locations in the region, initially planned to open an 1,800-square-foot store. The town of Union planning board approved the project and the developers acquired the property for $300,000 in 2020.

Nothing happened at the site for a few years. The developers had to resubmit their plan to the town because so much time had passed. The revised project called for a slightly smaller building.

Site preparation started in August 2023 with the expectation that the place would open by the end of the year. But construction was delayed for reasons that were never publicly disclosed.

The state Department of Transportation worked with the Dunkin' operator to develop a traffic plan for the busy intersection. Changes were made in traffic and pedestrian signals to accommodate the new business.

A manager told WNBF News the shop opened without fanfare Friday morning. Business was slow for the first few days because people were unaware that the place was open.

The Dunkin' operation has about 14 employees. The shop's hours are 5 a.m. to 7 p.m. seven days a week.

The site of the new shop had been home to a McDonald's restaurant from 1970 to 1997. The property had been unused since then.

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Contact WNBF News reporter Bob Joseph: bob@wnbf.com. For breaking news and updates on developing stories, follow @BinghamtonNow on Twitter.