By Kevin Boneske
Editor-in-chief
ASHWAUBENON – The village sitemap review committee voted Tuesday, March 16 in favor of a sitemap for the construction of a 4,872 square foot Chick-fil-A restaurant in the Bay Park Square parking lot next to South Oneida Street.
Community Development Director Aaron Schuette said the independent restaurant will be built immediately south of the mall’s Anderson Drive entrance.
Schuette said the Chick-fil-A will have 88 indoor and 16 outdoor seats, and will have two drive-thru lanes, parking lots, signage and associated utilities.
He said he’s cleared to locate by Bay Park Square as part of the property’s planned unit development (PUD).
Upon reviewing the site plan, Schuette said staff discovered that the building’s current setback, as planned, was 27.7 feet from the South Oneida Street right-of-way, although the removal of the street is currently 35 feet.
As a result, he said a condition of approval requires Ashwaubenon Village Council to amend the PUD to reduce the setback to 25 feet along South Oneida Street.
Schuette said a reduced setback would help the Chick-fil-A project and two other buildings on the property currently within the 35-foot setback.
He said the two non-compliant buildings could have ended up inside the existing setback due to the reconstruction of South Oneida Street with the acquisition of an additional right-of-way.
Schuette said construction on the restaurant cannot begin until the board of directors approves the setback reduction at its April meeting.
Impact on traffic
Schuette said the popularity of Chick-fil-A is expected to increase traffic in the mall and that the two drive-thru lanes will have a capacity of 37 vehicles.
“As staff we were concerned about the traffic generated and the potential impact on South Oneida Street,” he said. “Chick-fil-A hired a group (for a traffic impact analysis). “
Schuette said no engineering design issues are expected to affect South Oneida Street with a new Chick-fil-A, although some improvements are recommended for the internal path in the mall, such as a turn lane at dedicated right in the restaurant.
“We expect this Chick-fil-A to be a little more popular than your standard fast food restaurant,” he said.
Schuette said that TADI, the company responsible for the traffic impact analysis, used traffic data from a Chick-fil-A at Brookfield located in a shopping center to make design recommendations for the Bay Park Square internal path.
“As a staff, we recognize that traffic will likely be an issue for the Chick-fil-A,” he said. “We expect it to be very popular, which is a good thing.”
Schuette said he expects there may be a traffic slowdown on South Oneida Street in the first three to six months after the restaurant opens, due to the popularity of the Chick franchise. -fil-A.
“If there are any safeguards on South Oneida Street that require assistance from public safety for traffic control, direction, etc., the cost would be borne by Chick-fil-A,” he said. he declared. “It’s similar to any other business requiring public safety assistance for a large event. “
Schuette said the conditions of approval also include the implementation of recommendations for improving crosswalks and traffic islands in the traffic impact analysis, as well as an agreement with Ashwaubenon Public Safety regarding responsibility for costs associated with necessary traffic control.
Administrator Gary Paul has said he hopes a restaurant like Chick-fil-A will set up near Bay Park Square.
“I think it’s a good addition to the mall,” he said. “I think we will be very happy with the turnout that will occur there. “
Third wall panel
In another action, the committee approved a third wall sign for Chick-fil-A, so the restaurant will be able to have signs on the north, east and south elevations.
Under the village code, wall panels may be permitted on three sides of a building with the approval of the committee.
