With business slowed by the reconstruction of Third Avenue downtown, the owners of the Arbys fast-food restaurant at 328 W. Third decided to take on a reconstruction project of their own.


Dave McGann, who owns the Arbys outlet with Cyrus Vaughn, says they plan to demolish the 4,200-square-foot restaurant and replace it with a slightly bigger facility.


Weve been talking about doing this for five years or more, and the timing is pretty good right now, McGann says.


Third Avenue, a main eastbound thoroughfare, has been reduced to one lane, from three, all through downtown as construction crews continue work on a $4.6 million project that involves putting in a new water main and rebuilding the street. That project currently is scheduled to be completed in September.


With traffic on the thoroughfare considerably scaled back and business at Arbys down by 30 percent, according to McGann, he and Vaughn plan to begin demolishing the restaurant building later this month. Work on the new, 4,500-square-foot structure is expected to take about five months to complete, and McGann says he expects that the restaurant will reopen in November.


Vandervert Construction Inc., of Spokane, will build the new Arbys. Russell C. Page Architects PC, designed it.


The new building will be situated somewhat differently on the site than the current building, and the drive-through lane will be reconfigured. The new restaurant will have about 120 seats, roughly the same as the eatery has now.


The new structure will feature what Arbys refers to as a pinnacle design, which is the same white-and-red exterior design used at the other Spokane-area Arbys. McGann says, however, he hopes to keep the big brown-and-yellow Arbys cowboy hat sign that has been in front of that store for years.


McGann and Vaughn own five Arbys restaurants in the Spokane area, each through separate franchise companies. Their first restaurant here opened in 1968.