[ALERT] Milton Without The Meats Following Arby's Closure

Another day, another Arby's closure in metro Atlanta. This time, it's the Arby's at 5160 Windward Parkway in Milton. ToNeTo Atlanta readers suggest that the restaurant closed quietly earlier this week without advance warning to patrons.

Fulton County tax records indicate that the 3,020 square foot freestanding building sits on .78 acres and was built in 2008. The restaurant is situated in an outparcel of Walmart Supercenter, near the intersection of Windward Parkway and Georgia Highway 9, but set back from both roads with limited visibility. A former KFC in front of the Arby's, with superior visibility, reopened in January 2023 as a new Jim 'N Nick's.

Arby's, owned by Sandy Springs-based Inspire Brands, has seen several metro Atlanta units close in recent years, including those in Roswell, Alpharetta, Buford, Sandy Springs, Downtown Atlanta, Buckhead (Chastain Park), and Suwanee.

In years past, Arby's have also closed on Spring Street in Midtown, Vaughn Road in Kennesaw, South Cobb Drive in Smyrna, Metropolitan Parkway in Atlanta, and LaVista Road in Tucker, as well as locations in Northlake Mall in Tucker and Lenox Square in Buckhead, among others.

The chain's challenges are not exclusive to Atlanta.

A legacy Arby's on Sunset Boulevard, complete with a huge illuminated version of the brand's iconic 10 gallon hat, closed last June after 55 years in business. Also last June, Miracle Restaurant Group, an Arby's franchisee with 25 units in five states, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection for the second time since 2010, citing financial pressures, rising costs, and negative same-store sales, among other issues.

In metro Atlanta, many former Arby's have gone on to welcome new tenants, including restaurants, but also medical and banking users too.

Former Arby's in Alpharetta and Sandy Springs were renovated into new Chipotle restaurants, while one in Roswell became a Fifth Third Bank. An Arby's near the Mall of Georgia in Buford was demolished and rebuilt as a Raising Cane's, while the former Lawrenceville unit on Sugarloaf Parkway recently opened as a new Yeero Village.

A former Arby's just off Cobb Parkway on Vaughn Road in Kennesaw reopened in 2022 as a location of MINT dentistry, but has since closed.

ToNeTo Atlantareported this past October that Arby's closed its longstanding restaurant on Roswell and Wieuca Roads in Chastain Park. We heard then and continue to hear that a non-restaurant user is looking to occupy the property, but a lease has not yet been finalized.

Despite all the closures, the company and its franchisees continue to operate about 3,400 restaurants worldwide. Remaining Atlanta area units include those on North Druid Hills Road in Atlanta, Hammond Drive in Sandy Springs, Piedmont Road near Lindbergh, Peachtree Boulevard in Chamblee, and Howell Mill Road in West Midtown.

Are you surprised to see Arby's close in Milton? What would you like to see open in place of Arby's in Milton?

Please share your thoughts below.