Hoagie fans: Wawa opening 50 South Florida stores in next five years

In the next two years, intersections across South Florida will welcome a long-awaited sight: beloved Pennsylvania-based convenience store Wawa.

Wawa announced its continued Florida expansion Wednesday at back-to-back groundbreaking events in West Palm Beach and Pompano Beach, detailing plans for 50 southeast Florida shops slated to open in the next five years.

So far, 10 Wawa locations have been announced for Broward and Palm Beach counties by spring 2017 and another in Miami Gardens, also planned for next year. Each store will create about 35 jobs, Wawa said.

“We are thrilled to officially break ground on our first South Florida store and look forward to growing and bringing the Wawa experience to this market,” Chris Gheysens, Wawa president and CEO, said in a release. The West Palm Beach store, at the intersection of Belvedere Road and Australian Avenue, is the first local Wawa to break ground.

Last year, Wawa announced plans for a total of 120 South Florida shops by 2022, with the first opening in Broward and Palm Beach counties, as part of a Florida expansion that began four years ago with shops popping up in Orlando, Tampa and Fort Myers. There are now 92 Wawa stores in Florida.

The Northeast-based convenience store has a strong following for its custom club sandwiches — South Floridians will do well to call them by their true name: hoagies — plus gas, coffee, baked goods, salads and breakfast options.

North Miami-based IMC Equity Group, which owns the Miami Gardens retail development Miami Gardens Promenade, announced in February that Wawa was opening as part of the project, at the corner of Miami Gardens Drive and Northwest 27th Avenue.

More stores are planned for Miami-Dade County, but their locations have not yet been selected, a Wawa spokesman said.

This story was originally published July 14, 2016 at 4:48 PM with the headline "Hoagie fans: Wawa opening 50 South Florida stores in next five years."