Three new businesses coming to Vienna | News, Sports, Jobs

The PM Company plans to own and operate a Wings Etc. at 1504 Grand Central Ave. in Vienna. Site preparation is underway, and the restaurant is expected to open in September. (Photo by Evan Bevins)

VIENNA — Work is underway at the sites of three new businesses along Grand Central Avenue.

The PM Company announced recently that a Chipotle Mexican Grill will be built at the former location of the Vienna Walmart fuel station. The area is fenced off and foundations have been poured, said Jared Decker, real estate director for the PM Company.

“That’s a brand that’s been trying to get to Vienna for about six or seven years,” he said.

The company is very selective about locations, Decker said. Grand Central Avenue is one of the busiest roads in the state, with the proximity to Walmart and presence of a traffic signal to facilitate entry and exiting making it even more appealing, he said.

Chipotle is a “fast casual” Mexican restaurant.

The former Walmart fuel station site on Grand Central Avenue in Vienna is the planned location for a Chipotle Mexican Grill. (Photo by Evan Bevins)

“You’re going to … walk down the line, and your food’s going to be made in front of you,” Decker said.

There will also be a pickup window, and people can order using Chipotle’s app.

The PM Company will build the shell of the building, then turn it over to Chipotle to do the interior. The restaurant is expected to open in the late third or early fourth quarter of 2021.

The PM Company is doing something different a few blocks up Grand Central – planning to operate its new Wings Etc. location itself, Decker said.

“It’s a neighborhood, family-oriented restaurant that serves wings, burgers, wraps, salad, that kind of fare, but it also has an open bar,” he said.

Mardel Christian & Education — which sells Bibles and other faith-based products — is setting up shop next to Hobby Lobby in the former Vienna Kmart. (Photo by Evan Bevins)

Wings Etc. is planned to open sometime in September, not long after the start of football season, Decker said. While there is a bar, the restaurant is intended first as a place for families to watch sporting events or gather after a Friday night football game, he said.

Being built by Phoenix Associates, Wings Etc. will also offer outdoor seating. That and the opportunity to watch games are things for which there are few options in Vienna, Decker said.

Wings Etc. is expected to employ 50 to 60 full- and part-time workers, he said.

Across the street from the Chipotle site, the remaining empty half of the former Kmart is being converted into a Mardel Christian & Education store. The faith-based company was founded by a member of the family that owns Hobby Lobby, which opened in the other half of the vacant facility in 2019.

Mardel provides Bibles, books, movies, gifts, faith-based music and videos, children’s products, apparel, office and church supplies, classroom and teacher supplies, seasonal products and homeschool curriculum materials. There are 37 locations in the central United States and East Coast. This would be the 38th and first in West Virginia.

A spokeswoman for Mardel said the grand opening is planned for June 21 and the company expects to hire seven full-time and 10 part-time employees.

“Mardel is steadily expanding into more and more states, starting with increased presence on the East Coast, primarily along the Bible Belt (I-40 corridor),” said Abby Caviness, content/social media coordinator for Mardel. “We’re excited to be branching out to new markets that fit our demographic.”

Vienna Mayor Randy Rapp said the new additions will create jobs and reasons for people to come into the city.

“We’re very fortunate that we’ve got all this business coming,” he said.

Other ventures are in the works but have not been announced yet, Rapp said.