Maryborough, Gympie Guzman Y Gomez to open soon

After a pre-Christmas construction company collapse, two regional cities will be thrilled to hear Guzman y Gomez construction is back and ‘flying along’ in a region that punches well above its weight.

After a pre-Christmas construction company collapse, two regional cities will be thrilled to hear Guzman y Gomez construction is back an “flying along” in a region that punches well above its weight for fast food consumption.

The new year has served up good news after a pre-Christmas liquidation threatened the completion of two Mexican fast food restaurants in the Wide Bay.

The announcement last year of two new Guzman y Gomez Mexican Kitchens set to open early this year in Maryborough and Gympie brought cheers of delight as residents pre-planned their first orders at the popular Mexican food franchise.

Those cheers were briefly paused during the recent holiday period after the Brisbane and Townsville-based building contractor CASA Construction responsible for building four GYG stores across Queensland collapsed only weeks before Christmas.

At last Gympie can add Mexican food to its cuisine, with the popular fast food venture Guzman Y Gomez set to open a store at one of the city’s busiest intersections.

In a scramble to keep things on track for an opening deadline, Spring Projects, the owners of the Gympie site managed to secure a contract with Townsville-based Live Construction, which shared many of the same subcontractors as CASA.

“Now after the holiday break construction is flying along,” Spring Projects director Lachlan Grantley said.

He said construction had restarted in the new year with Live Construction and slabs had been laid down, the drive-through built and windows were expected to be going in this first week of January.

At the intersection of the Bruce Hwy and Excelsior St in Gympie, GYG will share its location with Subway, also under renovation and managed by Spring Projects.

Mr Grantley estimated there would only be a couple of weeks construction delay, with the hope that they might even be able to catch up, weather permitting.

Spring Projects director Lachlan Grantley said they had managed to contract a new builder with similar subcontractor relationships, making the delay only a few weeks, if not less.

He said construction was scheduled to finish in February, giving GYG a few weeks to move in and estimated the restaurant’s opening to be late March or early April.

The Brisbane-based company’s interest in the Wide Bay started with the opening of GYG Hervey Bay in 2021 and then the opening of Gympie’s first 7-eleven two years later. 

Mr Grantley said Gympie and Fraser Coast punch well above their weight with resident populations providing no shortage of customers for the fast food franchises.

Not concerned about the opening of the Gympie bypass affecting business, he said the market along the Bruce Hwy was just a “bonus”.

He said the Wide Bay continued to pose an affordable alternative to the Sunshine Coast as jobs and industry grow.

Artist impression for the Guzman Y Gomez eatery in Maryborough. Picture: 77 Architecture.

While Spring Projects is not involved in GYG Maryborough, Mr Grantley could confirm Live Construction had also been contracted for them and believed delays would not be excessive.

The new GYG Maryborough store has been under development on 306 Mary St since August 2022, and a GYG spokesperson said “there may be some delays but we don’t expect them to have material impact”.

The Maryborough GYG is currently advertising for a restaurant manager. 

Originally published as Maryborough, Gympie Guzman Y Gomez to open soon