McDonald's CEO sounds alarm over crime in Chicago: CNN

NEW YORK, Sept. 16 (Xinhua) -- McDonald's CEO Chris Kempczinski has big concerns about surging crime in Chicago, where the fast food giant is based, saying it is impacting the company's restaurants and making it harder to recruit corporate talent, reported CNN on Thursday.

Crime is "seeping into every corner of our city," Kempczinski was quoted as saying. "Everywhere I go, I'm confronted by the same question these days -- what's going on in Chicago? While it may wound our civic pride to hear it, there is a general sense out there that our city is in crisis."

According to Kempczinski, McDonald's restaurants in the city are suffering. There are about 400 of the chain's locations across Chicago, the third-most populous city in the United States.

Starbucks, too, has noted similar problems at some of its stores, according to CNN.

Over the summer, the coffee chain announced it would close 16 locations in Seattle, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, Washington, D.C., and Portland, Oregon over safety concerns, noted the report.