CULLMAN, Ala. – Cullman’s Chick-fil-A closed its doors Thursday, June 15. The building will be demolished and a new, more efficient building constructed in its place. The whole process is slated to take up to five months.
According to franchise owner Randy Earnest, the new building will have significant changes that will benefit both staff and customers. Despite the playground being closed since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, it was decided that the new building will include a playground for the kids.
“It would have been easy to go away from it, but we just really felt like our community wanted it,” Earnest explained.
The kitchen area will be expanded as well. According to Earnest, the current kitchen area is small, and the employees have little room to move around. The new building will offer significantly more space for the kitchen staff.
The new drive-through will have two lanes and will have canopies covering the lanes. It will have fans for employees and help keep them out of the sun. When discussing the new features, Earnest explained how important it is to ensure that his employees are taken care of.
According to Earnest, there are many customers in the community who have formed personal relationships with the employees at Chick-fil-A and come to the restaurant to see them.
“It’s a loyalty thing and that’s why we also like to give back,” he said. “It’s really not just about selling chicken for us. We really do want to make a difference in the community, and that’s easy to do because this community gives back.”
Earnest offered some advice for customers who might be craving Chick-fil-A during the reconstruction period. “We have a lot of really good places in Cullman,” he said. “Cullman has recently gotten a lot of great food trucks; there are some great options there.”
The project is expected to take approximately 20 weeks to complete, with a tentative re-opening date expected in early November.
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