The King is back on Mount Vernon Road

The king is back on Mount Vernon Road in Cedar Rapids  - the Burger King, that is.

Mount Vernon Road lost its Burger King on April 24, when it caught fire and then exploded just about 30 minutes before opening. Nobody was hurt, but there was plenty of damage.

About $600,000 in repairs and improvements later, the Burger King reopened Saturday.  Beaton Inc. of Cedar Rapids, owns the restaurant at 3030 Mount Vernon Road SE, along with about 18 other Burger Kings. Company President Perry Beaton says he still doesn't know exactly what caused the explosion. The cause of the fire was determined by the Cedar Rapids Fire Department to be a cigarette extinguished against the front exterior of the building.

Beaton said the restoration of the building took longer than expected because of some problems with the plans. He said the finished project incorporates a new double-drive through and gives the building a new exterior look in keeping with Burger King's latest restaurant concept.