Where has Jack gone?
That’s a question Tacoma and Lakewood fans of Jack in the Box have been asking after the closure of five of its restaurants in the past two months.
The now boarded up and gated locations are just remnants of their former selves, with the Tacoma locations attracting trash, graffiti and, in one case, a stripped and abandoned car.
The city of Tacoma says the four closed properties within city limits are in violation of code compliance. An inspection of the Lakewood location near that city revealed no violations.
Tacoma police spokesman Detective William Muse shared further details in response to questions, noting: “In short, the buildings have gone back to Jack in the Box International.”
“A regional asset manager has been in contact with our police. If there is any nuisance on site, they contract with a local company to resolve the issues,” Muse said via email.
Graffiti covers the exterior of a closed Jack in the Box restaurant at 2422 Pacific Ave. in downtown Tacoma, November 14, 2024.
To leave
Recent visits to the four Tacoma locations revealed several forms of decline.
Although a Fife franchisee previously operated the locations, each location has a different property owner, according to Pierce County property records. The majority of the locations are owned by entities not located in Pierce County.
Matthew Robon is affiliated with the Issaquah-based LLC that owns the former Jack in the Box at 4702 Center St.
That property, near Home Depot, has a solar-powered security tower parked in a drive-thru lane. Where customers once ordered burgers and fries, blue strobe lights flash.
Robon, reached by email, referred questions to Jack in the Box’s corporate team “as they are best positioned to answer questions about the security, maintenance and safety of their locations.”
Jack in the Box, meanwhile, isn’t talking about why the restaurants closed. The media relations representatives and investor relations representative did not respond to multiple requests for comment and questions from The News Tribune.
In its latest earnings report, published on November 20, Jack in the Box reported that it had “16 new restaurant openings and 20 restaurant closures during the fourth quarter” nationwide, without specifying locations.
A security tower stands in the drive-thru lane of a closed Jack in the Box restaurant at 4702 Center St. in Tacoma on Nov. 13, 2024.
Closures and decline
While several Jack in the Box locations remain open in Pierce County (including five in Tacoma), four Tacoma locations are now closed:
▪ 2422 Pacific Ave.
▪ 7605 S. Hosmer St.
▪ 6702 Sixth Ave.
▪ 4702 Center St.
The closure list includes 8814 S. Tacoma Way, Lakewood. The exact date of the closures is unclear, but a review of online comments shows that the sites ceased operations sometime in September.
All five restaurants were operated by the franchisee, AJP Enterprises LLC of Fife.
In 2012, Jack in the Box announced that AJP Enterprises had acquired 26 Jack in the Box restaurants in the “greater Seattle area.”
Another AJP-run Jack in the Box in Sequim has also closed, according to an Oct. 9 report in the Sequim Gazette.
AJP did not respond to requests for comment from The News Tribune.
Jack in the Box as a whole has expanded, with new locations planned in six states. In its Nov. 20 earnings report, the chain said it had opened “30 new restaurants nationwide for fiscal year 2024 and was net five restaurant positive.”
Fenced
According to neighbors, a fence was recently built around the former Jack in the Box at Mildred and Sixth Avenue in Tacoma after it started attracting people who weren’t looking for tacos. There is a car on blocks in the parking lot.
“It’s always been a pretty run-down Jack in the Box, even when it was open,” said Mindy Metcalf, director of a dog daycare business across the street. She said numerous cars showed up in the parking lot after hours.
Muse of the Tacoma Police Department admitted there were certain limits to outside efforts to address problems.
“For example, if a car is left on the property because it is private property, we cannot tow the vehicle,” he said via email. “The property owner will be responsible for it, and the local contractor will take care of it.”
He added that there is documentation of violations associated with all properties, “which means if someone is on the property, which they shouldn’t be, patrol officers can enforce the trespass order, either by people from the property either by arresting people. them.”
Welcome to Tacoma
The gated Jack in the Box at South 26th Street and Pacific Avenue is near the gateway to downtown Tacoma and is covered in graffiti. A pair of campaign signs for newly elected Pierce County Sheriff Keith Swank are attached to the building.
Yet another building at the corner of South Hosmer and South 76th Street has half its fencing missing while someone has been spray painting the name “Ricky” on the building.
“The graffiti is unfortunate, but the company does not identify itself as a victim,” Muse said via email.
He added: “I believe some of these locations have security monitoring or at least driving through them once every few hours day and night.”
Violations
City media representative Maria Lee confirmed to The News Tribune that all now-closed Tacoma locations are in compliance with the city’s requirements for their grease traps. Speculation on social media had questioned the city’s claims as a possible reason for the closures.
She also said all four restaurants in Tacoma have active business licenses.
Inspectors from the city’s code compliance department investigated the four locations and found violations, Lee said, but had no further details.
“The city is in the process of notifying the property owner of violations,” she said. “These notices are expected to be issued later this week.”
If someone sees something potentially illegal happening at the properties, Muse writes, those concerned about emerging criminal activity can call 911, or call 311 to report non-emergent, nuisance crimes.
