CEDAR FALLS - A long-established piece of the Cedar Falls dining scene is disappearing.

Diamond Dave's, at 126 Brandilyn Blvd., just off the corner of Iowa Highway 58 and Viking Road, is shutting down at the end of June, said Ron Dickinson, owner of the franchise that controls seven Diamond Dave's restaurants in the region.

The Diamond Dave's in Waterloo's Crossroads Center, which opened in 1993, will remain open, Dickinson said.

"The economy is horrible, as you know and, actually, contrary to what is reported by the media in the state of Iowa, it has really dropped off, beginning in March," said Dickinson, who first opened the Cedar Falls Diamond Dave's 25 years ago in the College Square Mall. "So, March-through-June sales have been down significantly. I don't know if the economy has been injured by the layoffs or what."

The restaurant moved to its current location in the former Julio's Restaurant building in 2006.

Dickinson, who runs the franchise with his wife, Pat, their three sons and a daughter-in-law, said the three-year lease on the Cedar Falls building is due to expire at the end of June and, given the business's recent sales trends, the family opted not to renew.

"My wife and I, it's time for us to retire, anyway," Dickinson said. "We're looking for time to do different things."

Sons Toby, Tom and Tory and Tory's wife, Hollie, will remain active in management of the franchise and the Waterloo store, Dickinson said.

Most, if not all of the approximately 30 employees at the Cedar Falls business will be out of work.

"We may be able to use a few parttime or something, but we have a full staff in Waterloo, and that's a lot smaller," Dickinson said.

Employees got the word of the impending closure on Monday.

"We wanted to give them some advance notice," Dickinson said.

The closure may present some ticklish circumstances for events that had been scheduled for the Cedar Falls facility beyond the closing date, Dickinson said. He said those events would need to be rescheduled.

"They could try to reschedule at the Waterloo (restaurant), but the room holds only 30 people," he said, adding that the room in Cedar Falls could hold 80.

Dickinson also said gift certificates purchased at the Cedar Falls store would be honored at any of the other locations.

The corporation may yet decide to bring Diamond Dave's back to Cedar Falls, Dickinson said.

"It's not out of the question," he said. "We've had a long history there. Customers have been great. It's been an excellent experience."