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OTTUMWA, IOWA -- After months of construction and preparation, the Pizza Ranch is ready to open its doors to Ottumwa on Monday.

The project broke ground last fall, and now with 66 employees having completed a ten day training program, the Ranch is ready to serve the Ottumwa community.

For the restaurant's owner, the project and opening day has been a long time coming.

"I've lived here my whole life, so I'm real familiar with this town, always wanted to own a business in this town and Pizza Ranch is a franchise I thought would resonate with this community well, so this location provides a great traffic count and it makes a lot of sense to be out here," owner Curt Hopkins said.

The Ottumwa Pizza Ranch is the restaurant's second location, and is about 1000 square feet larger than the original in Fairfield.

Hopkins said he is looking forward to getting the restaurant involved with the community with fundraising nights and other community activities.

Pizza Ranch opens at 11 a.m. on Monday, and is open seven days a week 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.