Panera Bread to close in Village of La Jolla

The Panera Bread franchise at the corner of Wall Street and Girard Avenue will close its doors Sunday.

The bakery-cafe is leaving upon mutual agreement with Davlyn Investments, the new owner of the three-level complex it has occupied for a little more than two years. Davlyn is remodeling the property, which is scheduled to re-open in December as the high-end boutique shopping center, La Plaza.

“Panera Bread has been blessed to serve the community of La Jolla these past two years and we look forward to doing so in the future,” said Sandy McElfresh, director of sales and marketing for Manna Development Group, which owns the Panera franchise. “Davlyn Investments has made a request of Panera Bread to release some space back to them for necessary building improvements. After several attempts by both Davlyn Investments and Panera Bread’s architects to accommodate the new design, it was clear the best option was for Panera Bread to relocate. The agreement was amicable and we are currently looking at other locations in both the Village and UTC areas.”

Manna Development Operating Partner Patrick Rogers added, “Our desire would be for every one of Panera Bread’s 36 associates and managers at the La Jolla location to remain in our family. They all will be given the opportunity to transfer to one of our other nearby bakery cafes.”