The wait is nearing an end for Southern Tier residents who have been looking forward to the opening of a new Perkins Restaurant and Bakery in Tioga County.

Construction of the restaurant on Route 434 in Apalachin started last winter. The 5,200-square-foot building is being built adjacent to a 52-room Comfort Inn hotel which opened in 2013.

The new restaurant site is located next to the Blue Dolphin restaurant. Perkins will be open 24 hours a day.

The Perkins project is being developed by Rajumaanar Enterprises. Company president Beth Ann Smith last summer indicated she hoped the restaurant could be in operation by early this year. But work on the site was delayed for a few months.

Winter weather, including the heavy snow from the March blizzard, slowed construction.

Members of the restaurant's management team are undergoing training in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.

The business operators plan to hire more than 100 people. Most of the jobs will be part-time positions. A job fair is to be scheduled soon.

Construction at the site should be completed next month. The restaurant could open in early June.

Check out the Binghamton Now tour of the site of the future Perkins Restaurant and Bakery in Apalachin.

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