Panera Bread plans to build a new restaurant at 97th Street and Metcalf Avenue in Overland Park.
Last week, the Overland Park Planning Commission voted 9-0 to approve the final development plan for the chain restaurant. It was part of the body’s consent agenda, which means it was approved without individual discussion alongside a series of other procedural items.
This roughly 3,500-square-foot Panera location will have a drive-thru, according to city documents. It’s just one part of the long-anticipated redevelopment of the old mall and shopping district once present at the site.
Looking back on Metcalf South
- Previously, this corner in the middle of Overland Park was a bustling retail district, home to a Sears department store and the general Metcalf South Shopping Center.
- The iconic mall — a nostalgic mainstay for many Johnson County natives — served shoppers for about 50 years by the time it closed in 2014. It was demolished a few years later.
- The Sears store, the last holdout from the original shopping center and in a standalone building, closed its doors in 2017. It was demolished in 2022.
- A Lowe’s home improvement store replaced part of the mall property that once housed a Macy’s department store and the Glenwood Arts theater five years ago.
97th, Metcalf redevelopment has taken many forms
- In 2018, developers submitted plans to convert the site to a mixed-use development with apartments and a movie theater.
- Later, the property was rezoned for retail uses. The city approved a subsequent revised development plan to allow for nearly 210,000 square feet of retail.
- Then, earlier this year, Overland Park signed off on a smaller-scale redevelopment plan for the site to include just 135,000 square feet of retail space spread across 10 buildings, featuring a new fitness center and a drive-thru coffee shop.
Panera is just one part of the 97 Metcalf redevelopment
- Box Development is the developer behind the redevelopment effort dubbed 97 Metcalf.
- Current plans for the property include a 90,000-square-foot Life Time Fitness, as well as a Dutch Bros Coffee, a popular chain from the Pacific Northwest that’s standing up more Johnson County area locations.
- This spring, Texas Roadhouse opened a new restaurant at 9761 Metcalf Ave.
- A QuikTrip gas station and convenience store is also expected to open soon.
- Space still remains for more tenants in the redevelopment area.
More on the 97th and Metcalf redevelopment plan: Overland Park OKs pared-down plan at former Sears site
