Hong Kong restaurant to rebuild following fire

Tyler Juranovich, Kokomo Tribune, Ind.
·1 min read

Jul. 1—The owner of the Chinese restaurant Hong Kong is demolishing the old building and replacing it with a new one, according to developmental plans submitted for approval to the Kokomo Plan Commission.

The restaurant's building at 1523 E. Markland Ave. was damaged in a fire on March 16 and has been closed since. While a reopening date is still not set, plans to rebuild the building are currently moving through the necessary governmental channels.

The commission's plat committee unanimously voted to give a favorable recommendation to the full plan commission regarding the business' proposed development plan for its new building. The development plan now heads to the full plan commission for a vote.

According to the plan, the new building will be all brick, a bit larger than the old building — at 1,680 square feet, compared to around 1,200 — and will be situated in the same spot as the old building.

The new building will keep the drive-through on the east side near South Cooper Street, with the inside layout — a dining room in front, a cashier counter near the drive-through window and the kitchen in the back — staying virtually the same.

"They were originally going to try and redo the existing building, but my understanding is it was just too far gone, so they decided to demo and build a brand new building," said Greg Sheline, executive director of the Kokomo-Howard County Plan Commission. "I talked to Matt Johnson (of Fortune Companies, Inc.), and it's going to be all brick. So it's going to be a really nice looking building."

Tyler Juranovich can be reached at 765-454-8577, by email at tyler.juranovich@kokomotribune.com or on Twitter at @tylerjuranovich.