Cove Jack in the Box remains closed

By LYNETTE SOWELL
Cove Leader-Press 

On May 1, the Copperas Cove Jack in the Box fast food restaurant was closed, along with other Jack in the Box stores throughout Central Texas, including locations in Killeen and Waco. To date, all but six stores remain closed, including the one in Copperas Cove.
According to company officials, the anticipated store closings were initially only to last about a week before the stores would reopen. 
Brian Luscomb, vice president of corporate communications and government affairs for Jack in the Box, Inc., provided an update on the status of local stores, including the one in Copperas Cove.
“As you may be aware, in early May we took over 31 Jack in the Box restaurants located in various communities in East Texas after a franchisee defaulted on his franchise agreement,” said Luscomb. “We began re-opening those restaurants earlier this month. To date we’ve re-opened 25 locations, including all five in Killeen.”
Luscomb added that he didn’t have a specific date for when the Copperas Cove location would reopen, but the company anticipates opening more of the closed restaurants in the next couple of weeks. 
Ever since the corporation took back the franchised restaurants as of May 1, Luscomb said the company has been performing maintenance on the facilities and properties, verifying that kitchen equipment is operational and in place, re-staffing and re-stocking the restaurants.
“Unfortunately, these things take time. The last thing we want to do is re-open a restaurant prematurely,” Luscomb said. 
The San Diego, California-based chain assumed ownership of the locations after the owner wasn’t meeting brand standards, and there were building and maintenance issues at the time the stores were closed.