First Columbus Chick-fil-A closes; new Polaris drive-thru opens
COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) -- A Chick-fil-A drive-thru that marked the chain's first standalone eatery in central Ohio has closed, while a new location has opened on the nearby site of a bulldozed Mackenzie River.
The chain's restaurant at 8787 Sancus Boulevard permanently closed on Sunday after more than 20 years in business, Chick-fil-A confirmed to NBC4. The Sancus Boulevard location opened in 2003 near Polaris Fashion Place and had marked the company's first standalone eatery in central Ohio.
Chick-fil-A's original Polaris location is closing as a new drive-thru less than a mile away at 1515 Polaris Parkway opened on Tuesday. The 5,000-square-foot restaurant features a dual-lane drive-thru, an updated dining room, a playground and a designated mobile pick-up counter for guests dining in or on-the-go.
Mackenzie River, a shuttered restaurant that replaced Max and Erma's, closed earlier this year and auctioned off its furniture in March before the building was demolished to make room for the new Polaris Chick-fil-A. The restaurant opened in 2016 after Montana-based Glacier Restaurant Group purchased all Max and Erma's locations and transformed several into Mackenzie River eateries.
The Polaris location's closing dwindled the Mackenzie Rive concept to three Ohio restaurants, with one in Pickerington at 1281 Hill Road N., another near Dayton and the third near Cincinnati.
Waylon Willoughby, the franchisee of the Sancus Boulevard location, is also operating the new Polaris Chick-fil-A with 100 employees, half of whom are from the previous location. Willoughby, who began working as a Chick-fil-A team member at age 15, is also set to open a new Westerville Chick-fil-A at 680 Polaris Parkway in 2025.
"In my journey from growing as a team member to a local owner-operator, it has been so special to experience the growth opportunities here for our team members, and the ways that our restaurant can have a positive impact on the community," Willoughby said. "We are so excited to reopen our Polaris Parkway restaurant and look forward to serving the community."
Mackenzie River was one of several Columbus-area restaurants demolished for a new Chick-fil-A, like Tee Jaye's Country Place, which closed in 2021 to make way for a Chick-fil-A that opened in April. Construction at this property included preserving the site’s 20th-century sign that has received a facelift with Chick-fil-A branding.
Worthington's Buca di Beppo is set to be demolished after the site was purchased by the fast food chain in April, auditor's office records show. While the restaurant remains open with a shuttering date yet to be announced, the location’s closing will dwindle Buca di Beppo to three Ohio eateries: one in downtown Columbus, another in Strongsville and a third near Cincinnati.