Chardon Planning Commission gave positive feedback to Starbucks LLC Dec. 21 over construction of a new restaurant at the corner of Center and Cherry streets.
Chardon Planning Commission gave positive feedback to Starbucks LLC Dec. 21 over construction of a new restaurant at the corner of Center and Cherry streets.
The virtual meeting was congenial compared to the one Dec. 7 because city staff, Sommers Development Group and the coffee giant had collaborated in shifting the original design presented earlier by 90 degrees, putting the drive-through window facing east on the building.
During the Dec. 7 meeting, three planning commission members – Andy Blackley, Lene Hill and Mary Jo Stark – voted against the original plan.
The plan presented Monday by group principal Greg Sommers and Tyler Rice, with Fabo Architecture in Cleveland, showed the building rotated to accommodate the commission’s desire the window not be visible to drivers traveling east on Center Street.
“I’m quite pleased with this layout. It’s exactly the kind of thing some of us were looking for,” said Blackley. “It will be very much in line with the Washington Square green space. I think this would set a good precedent for the next two properties to the east. This entire corridor will have the same look.”
City Community Development Administrator Steve Yaney said the Starbucks front door will face Cherry Street, the patio will face Center Street and the window will be out of sight on the east side of the restaurant.
The plan to have the patio on the north side of the building places it in the Center Street right-of-way, so Chardon City Council will have to approve portions of the site plan when it is completed. The street right-of-way is 99 feet wide, Yaney said.
Blackley said when Chardon Village was platted in the early 1800s, officials set the 99 foot right-of-way, perhaps envisioning boulevards.
Because the house that occupied that corner lot was built in the right-of-way, there are no utilities across it to work around, city Engineer Doug Courtney said.
No action was needed Monday. Yaney said there had not been time to advertise the hearing and notify adjacent neighbors.
“Before Starbucks went headlong into developing a plan fully, they wanted feedback from the planning commission,” Yaney said.
The plan also allows for landscaping, a bike rack and 20 to 21 parking spaces.
Starbucks customers will be able to drive in from Center Street or Cherry Street and planners retained the six-car spacing from the order window to the pickup window. At the Dec. 7 special meeting, concerns revolved around cars stacking up at the order window and causing traffic problems on Center and Cherry streets.
Yaney said he visited a Starbucks in North Canton that had about four car lengths between the windows and found the arrangement “horribly inefficient.” Because each Starbucks order is custom-made, when an order is placed, the staff has time to produce, package and deliver it by the time the customer arrives at the second window, Yaney said.
“Six seems like a more logical way,” he said.
Although there is still a likelihood of some traffic impediment, the arrangement presented will allow 13 or 14 vehicles in line before anyone has to park across the sidewalk, he said.
Blackley said the juxtaposition of the building will work.
“The majority of the commission is well satisfied,” he said.
He recommended Sommers work with the city staff and bring a completed formal site plan to the January meeting.
The commission agreed to shift its monthly meeting night to the third Tuesday of each month for 2021, so the site plan should come back for review and action Jan. 19, 2021.
