Panera Bread could be rising in a building in Leland. 

A contractor has applied to the town of Leland for a commercial building permit for a Panera Bread location, according to an application submitted in August.

Weingarten Development is listed as the property owner on the building permit application, which seeks an upfit of nearly 4,200 square feet of space at 2024 Olde Regent Way in the Waterford Village commercial area. DP3 Architects of Greenville, South Carolina, would be the general contractor, according to the permit. 

"A building permit application has been received for a Panera Bread fit-up in one of the two new retail buildings in the Waterford Commercial Village," said a Leland Economic Development Committee Report dated Sept. 6 from Gary Vidmar, the town's economic and community development director.

DP3 Architects also submitted a zoning change of use application to the town. It says the proposed name of the business would be Panera Bread and the location would have a maximum of 13 employees in three shifts, operating 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday.  Officials with Weingarten Development had no comment on the Panera Bread applications this week, and efforts to reach representatives of Panera Bread were not successful.

Currently, Panera Bread has two locations in Wilmington, 3506 Oleander Drive and 1156 Military Cutoff Road. This would be the first Panera Bread location in Brunswick County. 

As of June 2017, there were 2,043 bakery-cafes in 46 states and in Ontario, Canada, operating under the Panera Bread, Saint Louis Bread Co. or Paradise Bakery & Cafe names, according to a recent Panera Bread news release. The Panera Bread legacy began in 1981 as Au Bon Pain Co., according to a history page the Panera Bread website.

Restaurant offerings continue to increase in the rapidly growing town of Leland. For example, Chick-fil-A has signed a ground lease for a location in a 60-acre development in the works called Leland Town Center.

Additionally, construction is under way on a new retail/office building that will contain new restaurants in the Villages at Brunswick Forest, according to Vidmar's Economic Development Committee memo. The building, located across from the Joyce Pub & Grill, will contain a new Shuckin’ Shack location and A.M. Diner and Deli along with one other retailer to be announced at a later date, the memo said.

Have a tip for Restaurant Roundup? Email [email protected]. Cece Nunn contributed to this report.