The property has been vacant since the visitor center moved to the nearby Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.
The former Springfield Visitor Center at 1200 Hall of Fame Ave.
SPRINGFIELD — Good news for burger enthusiasts: Groundbreaking for The Luxe Burger Bar at 1200 Hall of Fame Ave. will begin this month, with opening expected in early spring.
Located at the former Visitor Information Center off Interstate 91, the restaurant featuring a build-a-burger menu expects to employ 90 full- and part-time employees with a payroll estimated at $800,000 annually.
Springfield will be the second location for the Rhode Island-based Chow Fun Food Group, which owns and operates five restaurants in Providence, including the first Luxe Burger Bar.
“Luxe has been an enormous success in Providence since opening in 2009, and we are confident our delicious food ... will tantalize the taste buds of residents of Western Mass. and beyond,” said John Elkhay, an owner and chef for the Chow Fun Food Group.
The property has been vacant since the visitor center moved to the nearby Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2009.
To fill the vacancy, the Springfield Redevelopment Authority chose Lustra LLC, led by local builder and lawyer Raipher D. Pellegrino, to develop the property in December 2011.
Pellegrino’s group bid $450,001 for the site, and planned $1.9 million in renovations. The other bidder, Alliance Converting Machinery Inc., offered $223,024 for the property.
The restaurant’s build-a-burger format will feature a range of ingredients, from American Kobe beef and Ahi tuna to lean turkey, with a wide array of buns, cheeses and toppings. Other items, including a create-your-own mac’n’cheese and specialty sandwiches, also will be available, according to Elkhay and company officials.
Ingredients from local farmers and vendors will be used whenever possible, he said.