McDonald's on Richmond Road to close after new restaurant is built near Southland Christian

McDonald's on Richmond Road, just outside New Circle Road, will close in late July or early August, when a new outlet of the fast-food mainstay opens in front of Southland Christian Church's Lexington campus, franchise owner Joe Graviss said.

The new site, less than an acre, had its concrete footers poured this week, Graviss said.

The new McDonald's will be "a little bigger" than the older Richmond Road site, said Graviss, who owns McDonald's franchises in Lexington, Versailles and Frankfort.

The new McDonald's will have a drive-through and seating, he said.

"We had a unique opportunity to partner with Southland Christian in the revitalization of that corridor and jumped at the opportunity to work with the great folks at Southland Christian and all of those folks who have invested in the corridor," Graviss said Tuesday. "We're just happy to be part of the team."

The soon-to-shutter McDonald's, at 2576 Richmond Road, will close about three days before the new one opens, allowing some equipment to be moved, Graviss said.

"You'll notice some interesting changes," Graviss said. "It's very, very innovative. ... We will have the latest and greatest design and thinking that exists in the McDonald's system. Some of the stuff we're going to be having is not even approved yet, but they've let us have it because it will be approved by July."

A Perkins Family Restaurant used to sit on the site near the Home Depot, but it closed in 2012 after a legal battle with LMP LLC, headed by leaders from Southland Christian. The church bought the property in 2010 to use as the site of its satellite campus, which opened in 2013.

Kurt Braun, who heads business affairs for the Jessamine County-based church, said the restaurant will both serve Southland Christian members and provide exposure for the church to those who patronize it.

Graviss is leasing the land from LMP, Braun said. Three other outparcels are available, one next to McDonald's and the parcels where the BP station and the Perkins were located, he said.

This story was originally published May 14, 2014 at 1:05 PM with the headline "McDonald's on Richmond Road to close after new restaurant is built near Southland Christian."