VALLEY, N.S. – Motorists coming off Hwy 102 will soon be greeted by the Golden Arches when a new McDonald’s restaurant opens in Valley next year.
The restaurant will be part of a service area that also includes an On the Run convenience store and Ultramar gas station, which developers say will be used by travelers and local residents alike.
“There is quite a gap between Westville’s Irving and Masstown’s Petro Canada,” said Dave Wallace, vice-president of development for Somerled Properties Inc. “And who doesn’t like McDonald’s? When you think about it, there’s not many places on the Trans-Canada Highway in Nova Scotia where the golden arches are visible. People driving by Exit 17 will see the McDonald’s logo and the next time, they’re going stop there.”
Wallace said Somerled’s existing service area off exit 33 in Antigonish was already a popular rest stop for those using Hwy 104, and the local public. That complex includes a Tim Hortons, Shell Gas and a Sobey’s Express store.
The new Valley building on the corner of the Salmon River and Pictou roads will be 6,500 square feet with gas pumps out front. The McDonald’s alone will be 3,500 square feet.
According to Wallace, the new service area will create between 60 and 70 full- and part-time jobs. Of these, between 40 to 50 employees will be needed for the McDonald’s alone.
“It is a huge economic boost for Valley, Nova Scotia, which is a rural location,” said Wallace.
The Valley service station was originally slated for completion by the end of this year, but poor weather and a longer than expected permit process has pushed the date to early March 2019.
Building the new complex is DORA Construction. Both DORA and Somerled are owned by Donald MacDonald.
Based in Dartmouth, Somerled is planning a new development in Pictou as well as Valley. It owns existing properties in HRM, Antigonish and Yarmouth.
