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The Logan Township Zoning Hearing Board recently granted a setback variance to a development company that plans to build a commercial building in Orchard Plaza on the site of three former restaurants.
The firm, 415 Orchard Associates, needs the variance to allow it to build 15 feet closer than the required 60 foot setback from the Orchard Avenue property line in that business district, so that it can install parking spaces between the far side of the building and an internal driveway and so that it can have a double-lane drive-thru, with a parallel sidewalk.
There will be two tenants -- Greenbean Coffee House and one that wasn't named during the hearing.
With the building still 45 feet from the Orchard Avenue property line, there would be no line-of-sight safety concerns for motorists, company representative Joe Grappone, an attorney, told the board.
Without the parking spaces on the opposite side of the building from Orchard Avenue, customers would need to park on the other side of the internal plaza driveway to access the building, creating a hazard, according to the company.
That driveway wouldn't be able to be altered "without a lot of work," Schmick said.
Nowadays, drive-thru lanes are much in demand by customers, according to township Planning Director Cassandra Schmick.
A double drive-thru lane in this case is desirable to prevent stacking of customer cars in an area that should be a thoroughfare, Schmick said.
Moreover, 60 feet is a large setback requirement, Schmick said.
That large setback was originally created by the township to allow for road work that has already been done, she said.
While it will be 45 feet from the Orchard Avenue property line, the building will still be 60 feet from the avenue itself, Grappone said.
The most recent previous building on the site was not fully compliant with the setback, either, Grappone said.
The three-person board voted unanimously to approve the variance.
The "uniqueness" of the property, modern needs for design of commercial properties and the previous business failures there influenced his decision, said board Chairman John Donley.
The development company "is trying to develop something nice in that area" on a spot where previous establishments didn't last, for whatever reason, Schmick said.
The site has hosted a Popeye's, an Em's Subs and an Asian restaurant, Grappone said.
Mirror Staff Writer William Kibler is at 814-949-7038.