Call it a homecoming: Dupus Boomer returns

Dupus Boomer is coming home.

Nearly three years after closing the Dupus Boomer’s restaurant in Pullman, Shane Markel and his father, Greg, are working to bring the popular eatery home to Richland.

Markel expects the full-service restaurant and lounge to open this summer. It’s named after the caricature of an inept Hanford worker from the 1940s.

The 7,500-square-foot, two-story restaurant planned at George Washington Way and Swift Boulevard should feature a partially open, wrap-around deck on the second story.

The first floor will be home to a 44-tap bar as well as a general seating area, while the top floor is expected to be dedicated to family dining and a banquet facility. Besides featuring a classic American menu, the restaurant plans to offer 44 varieties of martinis.

Markel said about 100 employees will be needed to run the Dupus Boomer’s. The family ran the restaurant in Pullman from 2008 to 2012.

“We’re bringing Dupus Boomer home,” Markel said.

The venture is just one project the Markels are pursuing this winter. The Tony Roma’s on Gage Boulevard in Kennewick, which is managed by Shane Markel, will close at the end of this year and re-open as a Buffalo Wild Wings next year.

Markel said Buffalo Wild Wings plans to lease the property from his father, who owns Washington Securities and Markel Properties, but will manage the business.

Many of Tony Roma’s roughly 50 employees will transfer to Dupus Boomer’s, Markel said. A number of others will assist in a third project — the setup of a Taco Time and Jimmy John’s sandwich shop in Richland near Swift Boulevard and Jadwin Avenue.

Another two-story building is planned for that site. Jimmy John’s would be in a 1,700-square-foot space, while Taco Time is destined for a 2,300-square-foot spot that should include a fast-food salad bar.

A third building on Jadwin should be home to three suites — a satellite office for Markel Properties and two unfilled units.

Ground has broken on all of the projects, which Markel said should be finished this summer.

Markel credited his employees with allowing his family to move forward with so many projects at one time.

“Our family, we are blessed to have so many good employees,” Markel said. “We have very low turnover here. ... Because we have low turnover, we do a lot of things right.”

He added: “We will be able to hit the ground running when we open Dupus Boomer’s.”

A retail strip mall was torn down to make way for the construction . The strip mall’s footprint will become a parking lot.

Markel credited the city of Richland with helping make the construction projects possible. He said city officials sold a parking lot near the intersection of George Washington Way and Swift Boulevard to his father about a year ago, which provided additional space so the three projects could move forward.

“They are great to work with,” Markel said. “They have really stepped up.”

Wave Architects of Kennewick is designing the buildings.

Anyone interested in leasing space can call Markel Properties at 509-735-2255. Job opportunities will become available as construction wraps up.

This story was originally published December 18, 2014 at 10:00 PM with the headline "Call it a homecoming: Dupus Boomer returns."