Sweet treats ahead: Work begins on Dairy Queen in Phenix City

Phenix City-area fans of Blizzard treats, DQ cakes and bakes, and deluxe bacon cheeseburgers soon won’t have to cross the Chattahoochee River into Columbus to get their fix.

Construction has started on a new Dairy Queen on U.S. Highway 280 in Phenix City, just in front of the Home Depot home improvement store. It is expected to take about 90 days to complete the construction, with the outlet employing 30 full- and part-time workers.

LaGrange, Ga.-based LABE Restaurant Group is building the fast-food outlet. The company also operates the Dairy Queen that opened last year at 6605 Whittlesey Blvd., in the Columbus Park Crossing area. A Dairy Queen has been located for years at 3580 Macon Road in Columbus.

Although bulldozers are already pushing dirt at the site, the company, along with Phenix City officials, will hold a groundbreaking at 10:30 a.m. Thursday, with the public invited.

The first Dairy Queen eatery opened in 1940 in Joliet, Ill., with the chain having grown through the years to encompass more than 6,000 locations in the U.S., Canada and 18 additional countries.

Of note, according to the company’s website: The record size for a Blizzard treat now stands at 22 feet tall and 8,224.85 pounds, with it being built on June 21, 2005, in Springfield, Mass.

This story was originally published January 25, 2017 at 12:24 PM with the headline "Sweet treats ahead: Work begins on Dairy Queen in Phenix City."