New Kettering retail center has 1st tenant: Firehouse Subs

Firehouse Subs has leased space in a new retail center on Far Hills Avenue in Kettering for what will be its third Dayton-area restaurant.

The sub chain, which intends to open a total of nine shops in the region, will open in a 1,900-square-foot space in a new retail building going up at 4301 Far Hills Ave. (Ohio 48) near Shroyer Road, Charles Fryman, the area developer for Firehouse Subs, said this morning.

The Jacksonville, Florida-based sub-shop chain opened its first Dayton-area location in Huber Heights last year. The second planned Firehouse Subs is scheduled to open in mid-April on Oakwood Avenue at Irving Avenue in Oakwood.

If things go well with final permits and the hiring of a contractor, the Kettering Firehouse Subs could open in early May, Fryman said. The restaurant will seat 63 and will employ 30 to 35 people.

Fryman, who operates a Firehouse franchise restaurant in West Chester, said he’s actively looking for sites for another six Firehouse shops, in a region that includes the Springfield and Dayton areas. An earlier deal to locate a shop on Ohio 725 in the Washington Twp.-Centerville area fell through, and he’s still looking for a suitable location in that area, he said.

Firehouse Subs specializes in hot subs and also serves salads, chili and other sandwiches in an atmosphere that evokes an old-fashioned firehouse. The restaurant chain is entering a highly competitive submarine sandwich market in southwest Ohio, with relative newcomers such as DiBella’s and Jersey Mike’s expanding in the region alongside national chains such as Subway and Dayton-based chains that include Submarine House and Super Subby’s.

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