The first Chipotle Mexican Grill in Portland has opened at a time when the publicly traded restaurant chain is scrambling to recover its reputation and customers after multiple incidents of food poisoning.
The Portland Chipotle opened April 17 at 45 Marginal Way, formerly the site of Century Tire. The Bayside property has been redeveloped by Portland-based Northland Enterprises and renamed Century Plaza. Northland said in a news release that a T-Mobile store also will be opening soon on the property.
Chipotle made financial headlines this week when the Denver-based company reported that same-store sales were down nearly 30 percent in the first quarter compared with a year earlier. The news sent Chipotle’s stock plummeting because the sales decrease was even greater than investors had anticipated. In the past six months, the company’s stock has lost almost half its previous value.
After enjoying years as a darling of the corporate restaurant world, Chipotle’s reputation as a healthy alternative to hamburger chains took a serious hit in 2015. Two major E. coli outbreaks were linked to Chipotle restaurants in Washington, Oregon, California, Minnesota and several other states. Outbreaks of norovirus and salmonella also were linked to the chain.
Chipotle implemented a number of changes to its supply chain and food preparation methods as a result of the outbreaks. In February, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention determined that the Chipotle-related E. coli outbreaks had ceased.
Northland purchased the former Century Tire property from Atlantic Bayside Investments in 2015. In addition to the Century Tire site, Northland also acquired 1 Marginal Way, 200 Kennebec St. and 202 Kennebec St., all of which it plans to redevelop. Century Tire closed in February 2014 after almost 90 years in business at 45 Marginal Way.
“It’s always exciting to see business come to life in an area that’s being redeveloped,” said Josh Benthien, who along with business partner Rex Bell is a principal owner of Northland. “Since the closing of Century Tire, the neighbors have been eager to see the area bounce back. It’s been a complex project, but we’ve worked closely together with Portland City Hall, and it’s nice to see that work come to fruition.”
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