Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutPLAN COMMISSION - 10/03/2001 - DUNKIN DONUTS REZONE/HIGGINS/KING Elk Grove Village Plan Commission Minutes October 3, 2001 Present: J. Glass, Chairman P. Ayers F. Geinosky E. Hauser C. Henrici J. Meyers D. Paliganoff D. Sokolowski T. Thompson Absent: None Staff: P. Vadopalas, Assistant to the Village Manager Petitioners: P. Cohen,Architect,Deiss Design Group B. Daniels, Construction Manager, Allied Domecq R. Pantillo, Civil Engineer, David L. Jacobson& Assoc., Ltd. Chairman Glass called the meeting to order at 8:00 p.m. Item 1: September 5 Meeting Minutes Commissioner Meyers moved to recommend approval of the minutes from the September 5 meeting as written. Commissioner Paliganoff seconded the motion. Upon voting(Glass, Hauser, Henrici, Meyers, Paliganoff, Sokolowski, Thompson, AYES, Ayers, Geinosky,ABSTAIN) the motion carried. Item 2: September 19 Meeting Minutes Commissioner Geinosky moved to recommend approval of the minutes from the September 19 meeting as written. Commissioner Meyers seconded the motion. Upon voting(Glass, Geinosky, Hauser, Henrici, Meyers, Paliganoff, Sokolowski, AYES, Ayers, Thompson, ABSTAIN) the motion carried. Item 3: Dunkin'Donuts Rezoning -- Higgins& King Chairman Glass announced that Dunkin' Donuts has petitioned the Village to rezone property at the northeast corner of Higgins and King. The petitioner is seeking to rezone the property from B-1 to B-3 Business for the purpose of constructing a new Dunkin' Donuts store with a drive-thru lane. Secretary Geinosky swore in the petitioners. - 1 - P. Cohen introduced himself as the architect and representative for this petition and proceeded to describe the proposed development. The subject property currently consists of a Dunkin' Donuts store at the northeast corner of the intersection of Higgins and King.The current zoning is B-1,and the rezoning petition was filed to rezone to B-3 (Automotive Oriented Business) in order to construct a new building with a drive-thru lane. Cohen stated access to the site will be provided by a two way drive off of King Street and a right-in,right-out access on Higgins Road. Cohen noted the existing ditch along the east property line will be replaced with new pipe and storm sewer inlets to be finished to grade. B. Daniels explained that Dunkin'Donuts acquired the Togo's Sandwich franchise three years ago, which is an upscale sub sandwich business. Togo's is now being paired with Dunkin' Donuts stores in one building to provide additional variety for customers. Daniels explained that the two businesses complement each other because they draw business at different time periods throughout the day. Dunkin' Donuts experiences 70% of its business between the hours of 6:00 a.m.and 9:00 a.m. 40%of this business occurs at,the drive-thio window. Togo's draws its business during the lunch and dinner hours. Daniels noted Dunkin'Donuts traffic goal is to serve 55 cars per hour during the morning rush. Daniels explained they are seeking a variation to reduce the required loading space area from 12'x 60'to 12'x 27'. He explained that the store's product is delivered by a 40-foot truck once per week and storeowners can coordinate delivery times with the Dunkin'Donuts distribution center to minimize the impact on parking lot traffic. Daniels noted the deliveries can be scheduled for 2:00 a.m. The remainder of the deliveries are conducted with 14-foot step vans. Daniels stated the volume of the drive-thru speakers is set to 62 dB, making their effective range approximately 12-feet, thereby not impacting neighboring properties. The manager can switch to a quieter "night setting", but the volume is otherwise not adjustable by store employees. P. Cohen asked if the Commissioners had any specific questions. Commissioner Hauser asked if a screening fence would be installed along the north property to screen from the neighboring industrial building. Cohen responded a screening fence is not a Village Code requirement, but one can be installed without objection if the Plan Commission requires. Commissioner Hauser asked if sandwiches would be prepared in-house. Daniels responded all sandwiches would be freshly prepared in the store. Commissioner Hauser asked for the size of the current building. Cohen stated the current building totals 1,600 square feet. Commissioner Hauser questioned how a 40-foot delivery trailer would access the site. Daniels stated the truck would enter off King Street, proceed through the drive-thio lane, park for the 30 minute delivery period, and exit onto Higgins Road. Commissioner Meyers asked for additional explanation regarding the variation request to reduce required stacking spaces for the drive-thru lane. Daniels explained the request is based upon transaction time studies which indicate the Village's requirement exceeds the space needed for this operation. Daniels explained the service of coffee and donuts through the drive-thru window is simpler and faster than typical fast food restaurants. Daniels stated the typical transaction takes 30 seconds to complete. Coffee service is provided at the window, and donuts are prepackaged by the dozen for efficient service. Daniels stated their operations plan contemplates the service of 30 to 50 cars per hour. Commissioner Meyers asked if relocating the drive-thru window from the center of the building further south on the building could provide additional stacking space. Cohen responded that option was considered but not feasible for their operations. Preparation areas are planned for both sides of the drive-thru window for the Dunkin'Donuts and the Togo's sandwich store, and that set up needs to be maintained in the floor plan. Commissioner Meyers stated he believes the stacking space reduction would be appropriate for the Dunkin' Donuts operations,but the Togo's sandwich operation will not be as fast and cars will not pass through as fast. He noted Togo's sandwiches are made to order and can take longer than McDonalds to prepare an order. Daniels responded that same concern was :shared by Dunkin'Donuts when they took over Togo's, and they are taking steps to improve Togo's service time. He explained a marketing effort accompanies new Togo's openings that asks customers to call orders in for pick-up, and this effort was successful for two recent openings in the area. Commissioner Meyers asked if the Togo's name comes from the phrase "to go". Daniels responded it comes from Tom and George, the first names of the business founders. Commissioner Geinosky asked for the record why the rezoning is necessary. Cohen explained they are planning for the new building to be a 24-hour operation with a drive-thru lane, which is not permitted under the current zoning classification. Commissioner Geinosky stated he concurs with the suggestion to install a screening fence along the north property line. Commissioner Geinosky asked how garbage would be picked up given the trash enclosure's location in the northeast comer of the property beside the drive-thru lane. Cohen explained the trash enclosure is provided at the northeast corner with a gate that is accessible from the parking lot. Daniels stated the waste hauling company would be contacted to determine if pick-ups could be scheduled during slow business hours to prevent any impact on customer traffic. Commissioner Geinosky stated he is concerned about traffic backing up onto Higgins Road if insufficient stacking space;is provided. Cohen stated if garbage pick-up could be scheduled at 6:00 p.m. or later, there should be no concern about traffic backing up that far. Commissioner Geinosky questioned if a landscape plan had been submitted for staff review. Cohen stated the landscape plan has not yet been submitted,but it would be completed shortly and submitted for review. Commissioner Thompson asked for the width of the drive-thru lane. Cohen responded 10-feet. Commissioner Thompson requested clarification on where the clearance bar is located in the lane if the lane would be used by delivery trucks. Daniels explained the clearance bar is planned for the southbound portion of the drive-thru lane, which leaves the drive clear for any eastbound delivery trucks. Commissioner Thompson questioned if the parking spaces along the west property line could be redesigned for diagonal parking to provide a wider drive aisle 10 and from King Street. Cohen responded the aisle is intended for two-way traffic, and diagonal spaces would not be able to serve two-way traffic. Commissioner Sokolowski questioned if moving the building further west on the property would provide additional space for stacking cars in the drive-thru lane. Cohen responded that space to the west is needed for the drive aisle and he believes they have developed a plan that maximizes stacking space given the size and layout of the property. Commissioner Ayers stated he felt the proposed site plan is unacceptable and the traffic circulation was poorly planned. He stated that planning the delivery trucks to proceed the wrong way through the drive-thru lane in order to access the site is inappropriate. He further noted that most of the morning traffic on Higgins - 3 - Road is eastbound, and the only way for eastbound traffic to access the site is via King Street. The turning radius planned for cars exiting the drive-thru lane to return to King Street is insufficient and would require a three-point turn. He expressed his feeling that mixing incoming traffic off King with traffic attempting to exit the drive-thru lane by three point turns is unacceptable. Cohen stated the truck deliveries would be scheduled for 2:00 or 3:00 in the morning,when they expect minimal or no traffic in the drive-thru lane. Commissioner Ayers noted that rotating the building 90-degrees would position the drive-thru lane to exit directly to King Street, thereby eliminating the need for motorists to conduct three-point turns. Commissioner Paliganoff concurred with Commissioner Ayers and suggested the petitioner redesign the site plan. Chairman Glass expressed his feeling that the site plan is unacceptable as proposed. He stated it is not appropriate to direct delivery trucks the wrong wavy through the drive-thru lane, that planning for motorists to conduct three-point turns when exiting the drive-thru lane is unacceptable,and the layout of the building and drive-thru needs to be rethought. Commissioner Henrici stated the existing McDonalds at Greenleaf and Busse and the McDonalds at Biesterfield and Meacham have the same layout and he expressed no concerns about the proposed site plan. Commissioner Ayers stated neither McDonalds site requires motorists to conduct three-point turns when leaving the drive-thru lanes. Commissioner Ayers further noted that deliveries are conducted during business hours, which raises concerns about traffic circulation in the proposed Dunkin'Donuts lot. Chairman Glass asked the petitioners to consider an alternative layout, and recessed the hearing for a 10- minute break at 9:00 p.m. Chairman Glass reconvened the hearing at 9:10 p.m. Chairman Glass asked if the proposed use would include a sit down restaurant. Daniels responded approximately 25 seats will be provided for customers inside the building. Chairman Glass questioned how the required parking spaces were calculated. Cohen responded the calculation is based on the new building's gross floor area of 2,721 square feet. Daniels stated they will review the plan to address the concerns raised by the Plan Commission about the drive thru lane, the loading space variation, and the access to the trash enclosure. Cohen stated the goals of the petitioner will include relocating the drive thru lane so it exits directly to King Street, to find a way to add a second lane of traffic around the building, and to plan for the installation of a fence along the north property line. Chairman Glass stated that the next available meeting date of the Plan Commission is November 7,2001. He explained that revised plans need to be submitted for staff review in the coming weeks. Chairman Glass underscored the need to submit plans soon enough to provide time for staff review prior to the November 7"' meeting. Chairman Glass recessed the hearing and stated it is continued to November 7"'. - 4 - Item 4: Adjournment Commissioner Meyers moved to adjourn and Commissioner Paliganoff seconded the motion. Upon voting (Glass,Geinosky,Ayers,Hauser,Henrici, Meyers,Paliganoff, Sokolowski,Thompson, AYES),the motion carried. Chairman Glass adjourned the meeting at 9:25 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Ztkllad4a, Assistant to the Village Manager C: Chairman and Members of the Plan Commission, Mayor and Board of Trustees, Village Clerk, Village Manager, Assistant Village Manager, Assistant to the Village Manager, Administrative Intern,Director of Engineering/Community Development,Director of Public Works, Fire Chief, Deputy Fire Chief(2), Assistant Fire Chief; Village Attorney. 5 -