A Look at Grindhouse Killer Burgers Plans For New Decatur Location
Decatur Metro | November 17, 2014 | 11:13 amWorking with the Decatur Planning Commission, a build plan for Grind House Killer Burgers at a new location at 433 North McDonough Street location in downtown Decatur is before the Decatur City Commission this evening.
After making adjustments at the recommendation of the Planning Commission (removing several parking spaces to comply with the required set back from the street frontage; providing front door access from the street frontage instead of the parking lot; and reconfiguring the outdoor patio), Grind House folks are seeking an exemption to the Pedestrian Area Regulations to keep the two existing curb cuts at the site.
Planning Director Amanda Thompson writes in a letter that the Planning Commission actually believes “the narrow one-way driveways located on either side of the building actually provide a safer experience for pedestrians”.
You can also check out a site plan below, which is also included in the meeting materials.
Yay! They have veggie burgers!
I can’t believe a one-story fry pit is permitted within a two block radius of Marta station. No lesson learned from Chik-Filet?
Huh?
what DHer is thinly veiling is pretty clear to me. question is, will he/she have the courage to actually spell the bs out.
It can be read a couple of ways. I think the comment may actually have to do with the lack of density of the site, but it certainly needs clarifying.
It’s fairly common knowledge that the Chick-fil-A cows read DM and have opinions on certain restaurants.
I think the lesson learned from the Chik-fil-a is that a suburban-style building with a drive thru within 2 blocks of a Marta station is a lost opportunity to build something more pedestrian-friendly and dense.
i hope i misread the subtext of the comment, and if i did, apologize.
guess i couldn’t (and still don’t) connect the dots between fried food and MARTA
Precisely. A fast food fry pit is a waste of this location, particularly from a regional transportation perspective, our land use decisions should reinforce our transportation investment in MARTA and pedestrian streetscapes. Andres Duany is famous for saying that “density makes the doughnuts fresher.” Downtown Decatur business needs residential rooftops with lots of pedestrians, not single-use fry pits with parking lots. Anyone that wants a vibrant downtown with more diverse options in housing, retail and services can see that this development is wasted opportunity. This land-use decision adds virtually nothing, and it’s a 50 year mistake. It is ironic that Chik-filet across the street from City Hall would not have been a daily reminder that downtown deserves better. In downtown, these types of business should be allowed as tenants in a larger development – not freestanding stores with free parking to encourage more driving.
Seriously. Can’t we build Decatur’s 2nd high school in the space occupied by Chick Fil A and Grindhouse? It’s completely boneheaded to have something so low density there.
If you don’t like the proposed development, then you should buy the lot and do as you see fit. If not, and if the plans are approved and permits are issued, then it’s a go and I imagine many people will be pleased. And by the way, it’s “Chik-Fil-A.”
It’s Chick-fil-A.
I kind of like “Chik-filet”–it makes some sense. So does Chic-fil-A. Actually, I never can remember the real spelling of Chick-fil-A because of the whole “EAT MOR CHIKEN” slogan thing. There’s too many ways to spell this wrong–capital or lowercase A? Chick or Chik? Fil or fil? Space between syllables or not? I’m not in favor of names with two hyphens and irregular capitalization.
I don’t know. I’m way too tolerant to eat there.
Or you could go with how one of my yankee coworkers referred to it recently: “Hey, you guys got that Chik-a-fil down there, don’t ya?”
DHer – maybe we should have the city just condem both properties. Then they could shop the property to a REIT based in New York City that has enough money to finance such a project. Who needs property rights and modestly capitalized local businesses and investors. Heck, the Brick Store and Leon’s are a little low density too- and how they mock our urban planning.
Hmm, OK. But Brick Store and Leon’s are proof that good businesses can thrive with no dedicated parking whatsoever. (I’m thinking of you, unnamed business that blamed their failure on lack of parking).
Dedicated or not they have parking. If I was a business, I wouldn’t want my customers to have to rely on the hassle of parking meters in this city. Oh, and the city employees have dedicated parking, let’s ( we the taxpayers) demand they create density on that lot before we force private landowners to do the same .
“demand they [city employees] create density on that lot before we force private landowners to do the same .”
Agreed.
“Dedicated or not they have parking.”
Where does Leon’s have parking, other than metered?
I didn’t say they had parking other than metered. I would bet that most people that eat at Leon’s ( at night – their busiest time ) drive and park nearby. Burger concepts like Grindhouse and Farm Burger need a strong lunch crowd. It is understandable that if they are going to spend probably at least $1Million developing the site that they would want some parking spaces.
Look, my beef ( no pun intended ) is that we talk about diversity in this city but forget that it is important to have diversity in business and property ownership. When only large developers ( like Cousins ) can afford to meet all the requirements of building – that’s what you get. I don’t want Decatur to look like Lindbergh Marta Station.
“I don’t want Decatur to look like Lindbergh Marta Station”
You got that right.
I would like to send a big WELCOME to Grindhouse. Thank you for choosing Decatur. The VAST majority of us look forward to you joining our town.
Free parking, drive-thru’s like Chic-filet and single-use buildings retard downtowns. There is no such thing as free parking. Customers pay for the parking in every purchase. Walking, biking, Uber-riding and transit customers are charged for a service they don’t need and subsidize driving customers. We would be much better off with a pricing system for parking that is demand based (time of day and location). Many downtown areas are eliminating minimum parking requirements and establishing parking maximums for new construction. Drive-thu’s are another accommodation to cars we make at the expense of a good walking environment. They bring traffic to one business at the expense of all others, and if you haven’t noticed, traffic in downtown, particularly at the railroad crossings is pretty lousy. Go to any great city and see if they have drive-thrus or an abundance of parking. A newly constructed, single tenant building with “free” parking belongs in the suburbs. Maintaining existing structures that add to the character of downtown is important, but new construction should be a mix of uses that helps support and reinforce economic development and a downtown community.
Dher – I understand what you are saying, and where opportunities present themselves to do big urban projects ( like Calloway or Trinity Triangle ) they should be taken. But for this parcel, that is not a reasonable demand for reasons I have stressed above. Great can be the enemy of good – and this seems like a reasonable land use considering the restraints. I don’t know what “great cities” you are talking about ( I imagine SF, NYC, etc. ) but I think Decatur has done a good job at striking a balance .
I’ve got nothing against diversity in development, or hamburgers, but as others have asked, if there is supposedly a school-space crisis, couldn’t this space be better used? And why does a place that depends on a big lunch crowd need more parking here than others? The lines for F20 have been out the door and, like others, it has no parking.
Decatur is full of small lots. This one is reasonably large, but developers often assemble adjacent lots to make larger projects feasible. Downtown should have sufficient carrots and sticks to encourage and require mixed-use buildings and that’s not to say that Decatur has to be built to the scale of a downtown Atl. Four or five stories makes sense. Every surface parking lot is an opportunity for improvement. Grindhouse, regardless of the high quality product, is a lost opportunity to improve the fabric of downtown. A lost opportunity to improve the tax base. And a lost opportunity further encourage a pedestrian oriented downtown.
For those who recall, the CFA was originally a failing Hardee’s and CFA just rebuilt the building on the original footprint. I have yet to see a two story freestanding CFA.
The higher the CFA, the closer to Jesus.
Aaaaaaaand BOOM!
Grindhouse is building a two-story building.
In DHer’s defense, I too looked at the rendering and initially thought the little guy on the patio was someone working on the AC unit.
Two-story in the tradition of SunTrust at Commerce and Ponce.. Looks more like a deck.
I assume this is the lot next to Chick-Fil-A where the school buses are parked now?
Yes
Elevations 1 and 2 on the plans are referred to as “Lumpkin” and “Woodrow”, which just happen to be the cross streets for their Athens location. I’ve heard of cutting and pasting, but this would be a new low for architects! They might want to check to see if these are the correct plans for this location.
I hate that drivethru at Chik-Fil-A, except when I use it.
I’m looking forward to this burger option coming to the right side of Decatur. The vibe at FarmBurger tends to swing West-Ponce!
Re the exemption to keeping the two existing curb cuts: that doesn’t mean no curb cuts down to the street at all, does it? There would still be curb cuts, but they would be narrower if the two driveways on either side of the restaurant were narrower, right? And there would still be curb cuts from the sidewalk down into the driveway, right? I’m not getting what the exemption is about–its just to narrow the curb cuts and maybe slide them in one direction or another?
I agree with the other comments about a lost space for the future, with a development of such low density. This site has a higher and better use than a suburban styled drive up shop. I guess that is what people get when a large percentage gripe about the other mixed use coming into down town. It is a dammed if you do dammed if you don’t type of mentality I believe. We have a huge smart growth drive and a large stay small side as well. Regardless of my desire to see additional density in the urban core, I will support this location. The Grindhouse team does great food. It is always good to see more interest on the southern side of Decatur. I hope it does well.
I’m torn. Grind house burgers are delicious.
However, what a dumb use of space. We should be building up and adding density and tax revenue, not adding parking spots. Not sure how, on the one hand there is a crisis due to the lack of space and the impending swarm of students and, on the other, a fast food joint with 20 parking spots is a good idea.
A locally owned, well run restaurant is a better use than a bus parking lot. And if the day comes that that site will support a more intense use, it should be no sweat to tear the restaurant down – it’s not like they’re building a steel framed tower. Sometimes, density happens incrementally – especially in towns with 20,000 people.
+1
Seems like lots of Monday morning quarterbacks here. This is a huge improvement over a bus parking lot and likely the best use of the property given the circumstances. Lot is really small, what else was going to get built in there?
How does that not meet the following objective –, to quote DHer, ‘ new construction should be a mix of uses that helps support and reinforce economic development and a downtown community.’?
Amen. I’m not sure I get the “build it and they will come” mentality here, as if all construction going forward should just be building five stories plus, minimum, because, you know, DENSITY. All you have to do is drive down Ponce and check out the empty storefronts (*cough*Ruby Tuesday*cough*) to realize that slapping a tower on every lot in town isn’t necessarily going to ensure that the people/business to fill those spaces will materialize. And then what you’re left with is towering dead zones in-between your more dynamic areas. Decatur, despite its growth and popularity, is not downtown Atlanta, and there should be a variety of development to ensure all types of businesses and residents are welcome. As others have said, when the time comes when there is overwhelming demand for that level of density, THEN we can start insisting on taller structures for new projects.
Moreover, when I hear people crying out for a tall building on this little lot, I feel compelled to point out the monstrosity across the street from DHS.
I’m not at the HS that often yet but seems like having some quick options for food beyond Chik FilA will be welcome. Just wondering if Grindhouse can build in some parkign spaces for DHS ????
Only sort of kidding.
Yeah, but there was some gnashing of teeth about losing the modernist-Barn-esque Dairy Queen. One day people may find the post modern shed-chic of Groundhouse or “corporate roadside architecure” of Chick-fi-A a shame to lose to some mixed use building. Not.
Pedestrian traffic, mixed-use development, a heterogeneous mix of architectural styles, businesses, and people…a livable, walkable city – Jane Jacobs urban planning
Interesting note from a reader: This site may have once been home to a Burger Chef.
http://www.freewebs.com/burgerchef/
Does anyone out there recall?
Yes, it was, in the 60s. Don’t know when it went away.
Had never heard of Burger Chef before the most recent season of Mad Men, but they were once second only to McDonald’s in locations before dissolving in the early 80s. Most of the locations were converted to Hardees.
We used to enjoy the Burger Chef on Memorial Drive that was next to Atlantic Discount. It’s still there, only it’s now a church of some sort.
Ask the office bldg property managers if the COD is ripe for more mixed use development in the area of Class A office space. They would probably say “NO!” And sadly, THAT is what Decatur needs more than anything. Tax revenue w/o the services.
If Decatur added 250-400 more hotel rooms (2 hotels), then a push for office could be made in concert. Decatur also needs more hotel/ conference meeting space. The Courtyard is making a killing because it’s located in a rare Atlanta locale: gov’t seat, courthouse. walkable, restaurants, life after sunset, safe and close to the airport.
COD is missing a HUGE opportunity for growth and the issue isn’t single-use development. The issue is the SE city with the most top rated restaurants per/ sq. mile and probably the most successful festivals per capita in the SE doesn’t have a booming tourism base. No, it’s not South Beach or NYC, but COD has a very lucrative and loyal niche that is not being exploited. .02.
Oh yeah…..WELCOME GRINDHOUSE!!!!! CAN’T WAIT!!!!
There was supposed to be a new hotel next to Courtyard in the works, but haven’t heard anything about it lately. I agree with you though, for sure.