The jutting, Tyvek-wrapped facade of the under-construction Krispy Kreme donut shop at 3055 S. Loop W. has looked like this for a while now, says a reader curious about the store’s progress. Following the North Carolina pastry chain’s complete retreat from the area in 2006 after a lawsuit with its main regional franchisee, the company opened 2 new Houston stores in 2015, though the announced-then-retracted February grand opening date of the Hwy. 6 location turned out to be much more December-ish than originally planned.
Eater attributed the slow-off-the-line opening to permitting delays, though regional franchise manager Guillermo Perales told the HBJ that the delays had to do with fears that the crowds would be too large for the store’s originally-planned infrastructure to handle. As for the South Main store? Posted to the inside of the front window is a highlighted letter from October documenting the donut stand’s theoretical ability to withstand hurricane-strength winds:
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The letter, addressed to a city structural inspector, is hanging next to what appears to be a copy of a documentation page showing an equation for converting wind speeds:
The store is under construction along the feeder road east of S. Main, between Taco Bell, Golden Corral, and Keystone Surgery Center:
- The Return of Krispy Kreme To Houston [Eater Houston]
- Krispy Kreme opening four Houston-area stores by end of 2015Â [Houston Chronicle]
- Krispy Kreme to exit Houston market in March [Houston Chronicle]
Photos: Swamplot inbox
Shipley’s good. Krusty Kreep bad.
The “textbook” page looks to me to be a building code excerpt.
Using the Project Number on the letter, the last inspection by the city was 12/08/2015.
http://www.pdinet.pd.houstontx.gov/cohilms/webs/Inspection_Lookup.asp
Most likely someone is not getting paid, so all the subcontractors have suspended work.
Good call, Brent! The description has been tweaked.
I had a good laugh at the thought that KK was slowing their roll on the new building because they were worried about too large a crowd mobbing them. Please. Instead of another donut shop, we need more bubble tea places.
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I agree with Scott J’s theory: This slow finishing of the store near NRG is more likely due to no money for the contractors.
Like we need more unhealthy food vendors in the So. Main area.
Krispy Kreme is no longer what is was when they left town in 2006. Have tried both new stores. My favorite is the raspberry jelly. They are now putting less than half the jelly they used to. On a bad day, maybe one third. That renders this once great donut to be what I call… plain old boring glazed.
Gisgo- You should open up a kale shop
With all the violations being posted everywhere, we sometimes take awhile, but we always get our man (sorry ma’am). Gisgo’s comment should read: “Like we need more *vendors of unhealthy food* in the So. Main area.” The health of the vendors themselves is not at issue, we assume. Also, we are sure that Gisgo is not interested in vending ‘kale’, whatever that is.
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Another ambiguity cleared up, you’re welcome.
Krispy Kreme franchise stores in Houston are run by Sun Holdings/Dulce Restaurants in metro Dallas. Both the South Loop West & Spencer Hwy stores were scheduled to open in Oct 2015. I verified this directly by calling Dulce. A total joke. As of April 2917, KK now lists the ipening of a store on Garth Rd in Baytown. Both the WLS store & Spencer Hwy stores have dropped for KK’s Grand Openings website. KK Westheimer store was only 11 months behind schedule. The whole WLS and Pasadena sites are ludicrous. KK is evasive in its replies. Sad to say the Return of KK to metro Houston is an embarrassment.
looks like it’s going to be turned into an Arby’s
https://www.buildzoom.com/property-info/3055-south-loop-west-houston-tx
At least, an Arby’s will add a different fast-food chain to the area.
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Another donut shop would have been useless with the Shipley’s (Murworth/Main: SW corner), Dawn Donut (Murworth/Main: NW corner), and Glazed (Old Spanish Trail near Kirby) giving them a run for their money.