Del Taco Demo Begins

Demolition began on the Del Taco location on Thursday. Erick Marsh, the franchise company's director of operations, said they are hoping to have the new location open in the late spring. "Some of our great employees that live in Roseburg are trying to keep the property cleaned up, but there is only so much they can do and they are doing it out of the goodness of their hearts," Marsh said. "I think they take a lot of pride in that store." *** Original post from July 8 One week ago, Del Taco on Stewart Parkway burned beyond restoration. The owners drove down from Salem to put up fencing and evaluate the damage. They committed to rebuilding immediately. When the fire marshal called Erick Marsh, the franchise company's director of operations, to tell him the building burned, Marsh thought it was a joke. He saw photos from employees and drove down and realized the damage. "That was a complete loss. There is no saving anything from that building," Marsh said. "It's sad but we could care less about the building. I'm sad about the employees. We are losing a great team and hopefully they all come back, but I understand there are a lot of opportunities right now and things change." Del Taco is franchised by Cactus Enterprises based in Salem. The company owns six other Del Taco locations in the region. The building on Stewart Parkway used to be a Jack in the Box and Marsh said it never really fit Del Taco's needs, but they made it work. "We were doing good there," Marsh said. "That store just did their all-time sales. It was doing great. The general manager has the lowest turnover in the company. They loved working for her." All of the management team were able to transfer to other stores and keep working, but there wasn't the capacity for the 19 other employees. Marsh said he hopes the rebuild goes quickly and those employees can and will want to return. The parent company created a new building design in 2021 called Fresh Flex for older buildings in the franchise. The new design will likely be implemented in the Roseburg rebuild. The plans are still in development, but Marsh said the company isn't going anywhere. The owners hope to have a bigger dine-in area and outside seating in addition to the drive-thru. Marsh said it will probably be at least 9 months before the building is complete.