Cranberry Chick-fil-A proposes drive-thru reconfiguration; construction to start on new Sheetz
CRANBERRY TWP. — An improvement project that will allow 52 cars to queue at Cranberry Township’s Chick-fil-A drive-thru will go before township supervisors Thursday, Feb. 23.
“So, if you picture this: they take that site that used to have cross-access aisles and now turn it into a giant stacking for those 52 cars to come through and stack under a canopy,” said Ron Henshaw, township director of planning and development services. “That’s part of the new proposal — all of the orders are taken there by staff, and then the cars will move up, efficiently, and then pull under the next canopy where staff then fulfills those orders and moves them through.”
Henshaw said the proposal comes after the restaurant saw increased drive-thru patronage throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Well, drive-up traffic has continued to stay on,” he said. “The original site was not really designed for this extremely heavy flow of drive-thru traffic.”
Henshaw said the site regularly sees traffic overflow into neighboring lots for Smokey Bones and a multi-tenant building. The restaurant has used interim traffic measures, such as Jersey barriers and traffic cones, to try and keep the increasing traffic in check, but required a more permanent solution.
“As a product of doing so well at this drive-thru business … they approached us about fixing their on-site challenges,” Henshaw said. “We encouraged them to proceed with that.”
After getting permission from their neighboring business to alter traffic circulation in the area, Chick-fil-A filed for revised preliminary and final land development as well as conditional use with the township. The proposal was recommended for approval by the planning advisory commission Jan. 30.
“You have the new access on Longtree Way, and the existing access stays, so it’s turning it all into a much more circular movement and much more efficient,” Henshaw said. “Chick-fil-A has traffic experts that have analyzed this and looked at this, as well as their engineering company.”
The improvements will, however, reduce parking below township requirements, according to Henshaw.
“So they showed us a parking-needs analysis that shows that the shift in their business from indoor seating to the drive-thru is what the predominant movement is,” Henshaw said. “And so we’ll have to give them release to have a lower amount of parking that what is required by the ordinance.”
Henshaw said the proposal “really is something,” and that its benefits to both customers and neighbors is important to the restaurant.
“It’s them trying to make sure that their customers are satisfied, and also that they’re not affecting their adjacent land-use partners there.”
Henshaw also said that construction is ready to begin on a new Sheetz off Route 228.
“It’s pretty much at the corner of Franklin Road and 228, and Longtree Way sort of boxes it in,” he said.
At a recent Butler County Planning Committee meeting, Henshaw said he addressed comments concerning the abundance of Sheetz and GetGo locations in the county.
“From our viewpoint, these convenience general gas stations, they’re the modern-day general store,” Henshaw said. “They’ve got so many things that people need and want, and putting them in convenient locations — i.e. convenience store — it makes sense.”
He did emphasize, though, that the township enforces restrictions on their location. Under a recent ordinance, a 2,500-foot buffer is required between stations.
“Of course, there’s no issue with this Sheetz, but we do restrict them in Cranberry,” he said. “There’s still more that can happen in Cranberry, but there’s an eventual restriction because we don’t allow them to be stacked upon one another.”
The site has recently been graded in preparation for construction, according to Henshaw.
“It’s pad-ready so it’s graded up, and the roads have to get put in first,” he said.
New roads will include access from Route 228, allowing customers to enter and exit the site.
“So the roads are in progress and then the Sheetz,” Henshaw said. “It’s going to be starting construction here, probably very soon.”
