The long-standing Wendy’s restaurant at 3519 W. 10th St. was torn down in the late summer, and the lack of activity at the site since has fueled speculation the fast food chain was pulling out of Great Bend. That is not the case, assured the eatery’s owners.

“The previous Wendy’s building was scraped to accommodate one of Wendy’s newest and most efficient buildings to date,” said Amanda Steffanic, director of development & real estate for the Spokane Valley, Wash.-based WenSpok Companies. This is the franchise group that owns the restaurant. 

“This building will have the newest in Wendy’s technology, kitchen efficiencies, more eco-friendly building materials, energy-saving equipment and a better lot layout for mobile ordering pickup along with specified bus parking,” she said. Great Bend will be home to one of the first designs of its kind across the nation.

“We are taking the necessary steps and time to make sure the building is the best it can be for the Great Bend community,” she said. They expect to move forward with construction by early spring. 

“We are very excited to serve the community of Great Bend, Kansas, again very soon,” Steffanic said.

The original building was built in 1979. It was razed in August.