By By SPIROS GALLOS / Niles Daily Star
NILES - Let the countdown begin! The Niles McDonald's, 1203 S. 11th St, is holding a grand re-opening celebration Thursday, Veteran's Day, beginning at 11 a.m.
The new store replaces the McDonald's which burned down May 3, when a heating device which was being used to thaw frozen pipes started a fire which consumed the building.
The Niles City Fire Department, which was one of the departments which contained the blaze on May 3, will be on hand at 11:15 a.m. to conduct a flag raising ceremony in honor of veterans. The re-opening celebration will continue throughout the day.
The new store is completely redesigned on the inside, featuring state of the art equipment in the kitchen, a small fire place, cherry wood accents throughout the store, and a flat-panel high definition television in the lobby for guests to watch.
The store also features a unique "treehouse" play place for children. The play place is only the second of its kind in North America.
Outside, the store will feature a dual lane drive-thru, which is the first of its kind in the Michiana area.
The new drive-thru is designed to accommodate more traffic and shorten wait times for customers at the drive-thru.
The new store will employ about 80 people, just a few more than the old store had employed, Schmidt said.
Although the grand re-opening ceremonies begin at 11 a.m., breakfast lovers need not worry, because the store will open at 5:30 a.m. to begin serving breakfast.
The store re-opening will mean great things for McDonald's and the Niles community, Schmidt said.
Schmidt said the response McDonald's has received from the community is amazing.
There will also be grand-opening events happening during the weekend as well.
On Saturday, Nov. 13, Ronald McDonald will be at the new store, hosting a "Get Active" show, at 11 a.m.
103.9 WRBR will also be doing a live broadcast from the store that day from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.
McDonald's will also be selling paper hands for one dollar each, with the proceeds going to the Ronald McDonald House.