Schuylkill County business leaders and representatives of Onvo sliced into an oversized burrito Tuesday morning to herald the grand opening of the Onvo Travel Plaza at Highridge Business Park.
The opening of Onvo marks the culmination of a 20-year journey to open a travel plaza near the Highridge Business Park, which employs more than 5,000 people at myriad big-name businesses.
“It’s been a long, long road,” Onvo COO Jeff Byard said at Tuesday’s festivities. “Pennsylvania loves its convenience stores. Depending on what part of the state you’re in, there’s some wars going on. But at the corner of Highridge and Keystone, this is number 1.”
Schuylkill Economic Development Corp. President Frank Zukas, who has been working on this project from the very beginning remarked on the history which led to Tuesday’s burrito cutting – a ribbon was cut, too – and said Onvo’s opening was only a continuation of Highridge’s growth.
An extended-stay hotel is also expected to open near Onvo in 2025.
“I think we as a community will find this as a very positive asset for everybody,” Zukas said.
Tuesday’s ceremony also featured remarks from PADCO President Savas Logothetides and Schuylkill County Commissioners Gary Hess and Boots Hetherington.
Details on New Onvo Travel Plaza at Highridge
The new Onvo store is expected to employ 75 people.
This is the first Onvo location in Schuylkill County.
The building at the intersection of Keystone Blvd. and Highridge Rd. is 9,961 square feet and features three showers and laundry facilities. It’s Onvo’s biggest location.
Onvo is debuting its made-to-order food program, Food on the Fly, at the Schuylkill County location. The signature item on its made-to-order menu is the Craverito, a five-foot version of it was used in Tuesday’s burrito cutting.
Handcrafted coffee, espresso, and lattes are also available along with all the usual trappings of a convenience store and travel plaza.
A full-service Burger King store is also on site.
Right now, there are 36 truck parking spots and Onvo plans to add another 80 at the Schuylkill County location.
There are 10 gas lanes and 6 high-flow diesel pumps. Four EV charging stations are planned for 2025.
A “Barking Lot” meant for travelers with pets in tow is also planned for the near future.
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