Two National Chains Closing Montgomery Locations

Two national chains are set to close up shop in Montgomery in the coming weeks.

The Applebee’s location at 350 U.S. Route 30 will close for good Sunday, June 23, and the Blockbuster location at 1550 Douglas Road will begin liquidation soon with plans for closure in August, said Charlene Coulombe-Fiore, executive director of the Montgomery Economic Development Corp.

Coulombe-Fiore said she worked to save the Blockbuster store from closing, as she believed the location did a pretty good business. 

 “I don’t like closings of any kind in Montgomery,” Coulombe-Fiore said. “But at the same time, every closing could be an opportunity for something else to come along.”

The Papa John’s Pizza location affiliated with the Blockbuster will remain open, Coulombe-Fiore said.

As for the Applebee’s space, Coulombe-Fiore said she will be working immediately to find a replacement for the location.

“We just came back from a show in Las Vegas, and we’ve got a list of 30 different franchisees to contact,” she said. “We’re going to be proactive in finding something.

Applebee’s announced in early May that it was closing eight locations in Illinois, and at that time the Montgomery location was not on the list.

According to the Chicago Tribune, local franchisee AppleIllinois LLC filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on April 22. The Tribune reported that more closings due to the filing were anticipated. 

Blockbuster, which is now owned by Dish Network Corp., announced in January plans to close 300 stores this year. In 2012, the company closed 500 more locations. 

It's not all bad news from Montgomery, however, as plans for the Sam's Club on Route 34 next to JC Penny continue. Construction is set to being this fall, and the location is projected to bring 170 jobs to the area.