Construction is now under way on a Waffle House at 255 N. Front St., the building once occupied by SoapBox Laundro-Lounge.
 
North Front Street Ventures purchased the 17,000-square-foot building in November 2014. It was reported at that time by the Greater Wilmington Business Journal that Waffle House had committed to the location and was originally slated to open in April 2015.
 
Waffle House did not respond to questions regarding the delay in construction at this particular site, but a public relations representative confirmed that the restaurant is expected to open in 2018.
 
While many Waffle House locations are stand-alone buildings with parking, a representative from Waffle House stated that the company has several urban locations, similar to the one slated for downtown Wilmington, in cities such as Atlanta. This will be the company’s seventh location in the Wilmington area, with five locations currently in Wilmington and one in Leland.

“While downtown consists mostly of independently owned restaurants, we do have some national chains, and the addition of another nationally recognized franchise will be appealing to some consumers,” said Ed Wolverton, president and CEO of Wilmington Downtown Inc.
 
Wolverton said that he has not heard of any opposition to the 24-hour restaurant in terms of late-night crowds.
 
“We already have several locations catering to the late-night crowd and having another is beneficial from a public safety perspective,” Wolverton said.

Waffle House, headquartered in Norcross, Georgia, operates more than 1,500 company and franchisee-owned restaurants, all open 24-hours a day, 365 days a year.
 
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