The Five Points West McDonald’s reopened this month after a two-month closure to remodel, upgrade and update the restaurant, which Birmingham officials say is a key investment in the neighborhood near the CrossPlex.

“This restaurant has been an anchor in this community and I am very glad to see these investments and improvements being made,” said Birmingham City Council member Carol Clarke. “Beyond just being a place for residents to get food, they are a large employer in the area and are currently looking to expand those opportunities. This is a big win for the neighborhood.”

The remodeled McDonald’s has additional new indoor seating, updated décor and kiosks for ordering.

It has 50 employees including eight managers but plans to expand to 65 employees with 12 managers, said Nick Valluzzo, owner of Valluzzo Companies, which operates 79 McDonald’s franchises in Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana.

Valluzzo, based in the Birmingham area, said he’s owned the Five Points West franchise since August 2019.

After the opening of the nearby CrossPlex Village, which includes a Comfort Inn, Starbuck’s and Walgreen’s, he had to decide whether to move to that location or invest in improvements at the current location, 2201 Bessemer Highway.

“Our biggest question was do we move to the CrossPlex, or stay here,” Valluzzo said following a grand re-opening ceremony on Wednesday, Aug. 30.

“This store was very outdated,” Valluzzo said. “It was due for an upgrade.”

The Birmingham CrossPlex is an athletic complex with an Olympic pool and NCAA track facilities that hosts high school and college sporting events and was a venue for the World Games last year. It was built on the site of the former Alabama State Fairgrounds at Fair Park.

“That is a huge draw,” Valluzzo said. “We wanted to match the investment that’s going on there. It’s a great facility and has created a vibrant atmosphere.

The McDonald’s is within walking distance of the new Birmingham Xpress western hub, an express bus line that runs from the CrossPlex to the downtown MAX bus station to Woodlawn on the eastern side of the city.

Shanette Hinkle, a supervisor at the Five Points West McDonald’s, said she was a teenager when the McDonald’s location opened at Five Points West in 1987, replacing a Central Park location that had previously closed.

She was working at the Lomb Avenue location of McDonald’s at the time, she said.

“It means a lot to the neighborhood,” she said. “A lot of people don’t have private transportation. They rely on public transportation. The bus stop is right here.”

At the eastern end of the Birmingham Xpress bus line, the McDonald’s in Woodlawn closed earlier this year, after persistent vandalism and a shooting which left bullets in the drive-through menu stand.

That franchise was owned by a different company.

Valluzzo said he’s invested in the future of Five Points West by upgrading the exterior face of the McDonald’s, expanding the kitchen and lobby and dining areas and hiring more employees. He thinks people will like the changes.

“If we invest in a community, we feel the community will take care of us,” Valluzzo said.

See also: Woodlawn McDonald’s closes due to gunfire, crime, vandals

Birmingham Mayor Woodfin on what public transit should be: ‘embrace’ it