SANIBEL, Fla — If you come to Sanibel, you know the Dairy Queen on Periwinkle was one of the first things you saw. Since Hurricane Ian, it’s been empty… a constant reminder of the destruction. But that’s now changing.
Fox 4’s Sanibel Community Correspondent Austin Schargorodski s got with the property owner to show you what’s coming to the site.
Watch to get a look at what's coming:
A new roof is going up, and the building has been gutted. It’s all part of owner Josh King’s plan for a new diner that will serve burgers sourced from his family’s own cattle farm.
“We really take great pride in it, and it is 100% organic right from our fields,” King said.
King says the diner will blend in some of what people loved about Dairy Queen. “We’re still gonna have shakes. We’re still gonna have malts. And we’re gonna have affordable meals for families,” he said.
People Austin spoke with on Tuesday say they’re excited to finally see progress. “Now that there’s some action and building there, we’re excited to see what’s gonna come,” one visitor said.
Amber Brown aid her grandparents once owned a Dairy Queen in Minnesota, and this spot became their family’s tradition every time they visited Sanibel.
“It just always held that importance to us. It’s been 40 years now with that tradition and to not see it there is kinda sad. I’m looking forward to it open. He’s got till next November so we can stop in hahaha,” Brown said.
King said he fought to save the original building, and the new diner will look just like the old Dairy Queen, right down to the tile roof. But keeping that look meant meeting today’s stricter building rules.
“There’s flood panels that are being designed and built. You know a lot of reinforcement into those walls. We had to bust out all the concrete floor and pour a 20 inch floor and dole it into the walls,” King said.
He said he hopes the diner does more than serve good food. “It should give people more hope that the island will survive no matter what Mother Nature dishes out to us,” King said.
King is aiming to open sometime in 2026.
