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- Subscribe - Contact Us - Rate Card - Place an Ad Valley&State Backpage O&E Sports Archives Classifieds Faith&Beliefs Obituaries Revels October 27, 2004 Goodbye Mickey D's By Bill Choy Ashland Daily Tidings The golden arches aren't very golden. At least not in Ashland, where the local McDonald's is closing down on Sunday after 20 years of operation. Customer waits for his breakfast order this morning outside McDonald's, which is scheduled to close on Sunday. Photo by Denise Baratta | Ashland Daily Tidings Jan Hill, Marketing Manager for the McDonald's regional office based in Kirkland, Wash., confirmed that the restaurant on Highway 66, near the Ashland Family YMCA and across the street from Pizza Hut, will shut down, with its last day of business on Sunday. She said the closing has been talked about and looked at for quite some time and was closed for "business reasons." Hill said population and business growth trends in the area also contributed to the decision to close, along with poor sales. It is unusual for a McDonald's to close down, she said. While Hill did not have any figures on the number of McDonald's restaurants which close she said it is "very small and not in the norm." Hill said McDonald's has not ruled out the possibility of building another store in the area in the future, depending on need and population trends. She was unsure if any employees were being let go or were being transferred to other stores. The Ashland McDonald's is owned by Gene Hill (no relation to Jan Hill), who owns seven McDonald's restaurants throughout the area. "We appreciate the business we received, but we had to take a look at our location and real estate ventures and make some tough decisions," Hill said. Hill, who has owned the Ashland McDonald's since 1998, said approximately half of the store's 20 to 25 employees will transfer to other stores. While all were offered the chance to transfer, the rest decided to look for other jobs, he said. Hill said they were told of the decision several weeks ago. "I think it's been a very smooth process and we're tying to seek positions for anyone who wants to remain with McDonald's," he said. The building and the drive-through license is owned by McDonald's, Hill said. He was not sure what they had planned for either. McDonald's is not the first significant chain restaurant to languish in Ashland. More than a year ago, Papa John's Pizza shut down, as well as a Denny's Restaurant in September 2003. Several years ago, the town's Dominos Pizza closed down. A new one opened last year. Ron Roth, who has owned Geppetto's restaurant on East Main Street for 27 years along with his wife, thinks the closing of the other national chains and now McDonald's shows that people in Ashland have a different philosophy about food compared to other parts of the country. "I think Ashland does not lend itself to chain-type operations," he said. "We're not the mainstream American modern culture here � The people who live here are more oriented to go for the real food they can get at local restaurants � Also, tourists don't come to Ashland to eat at McDonald's and Burger King. They come for the reputation of our independent restaurants." Even though the closure is likely to help nearby fast food restaurants, Dairy Queen owner Ron Peil said he was sorry to hear McDonald's is closing. "Anytime someone goes out of business I feel bad," he said. "People lose their jobs, which no one likes to see � It's tough. They've been around a long time." Peil, who has owned the Dairy Queen on Siskiyou Boulevard since 1987, does not expect to see any substantial increase in business from the closing, saying the two eateries are in different traffic zones. In the Aug. 23, 1984 edition of the Daily Tidings, it was announced that work on the McDonald's started that day and was scheduled to open later than year, after being delayed for three years by planning snags. DailyTidings.com Home Page Valley&State | Backpage | O&E | Sports | Archives | Weather | Classifieds Columnists | Faith&Beliefs | Obituaries | Revels | Subscribe | Contact Us Copyright 2004 Ashland Daily Tidings and Ottaway Newspapers All Rights Reserved Click Here Site Search: .:Advertisements:. RESOURCES - Mail Tribune News - ODOT Road Cams