Dunkin’ Donuts Withdraws Proposal for Scott Boulevard Location
Decatur Metro | July 25, 2014 | 9:34 am
From the Medlock neighborhood website…
The Dunkin’ Donuts’ (DD) special land use permit (SLUP) proposed for 1450 Scott Blvd (old Avon Bldg. site) was withdrawn* at the Board of Commissioners’ session on July 22.
Many were looking forward to a Dunkin’ Donuts but others warned that DD’s concessions, although substantial, did not address key impacts such as additional pollution from idling cars and traffic congestion. Specifically, the drive-through’s peak operation hours would have coincided with rush hour traffic at an already congested two-lane stretch of road.
Photo via Google Maps
I always had the feeling that DD at the N. Decatur Rd. location closed b/c the shop was on the wrong side of the road. I think that morning traffic (going towards the work place) dictates the success of a coffee/doughnut shop. It must be located for convenience so you could simply drive in and back out easily. Scott Blvd. sounds like a good idea (and on the correct side of the road), but maybe not that close to the intersection.
Do they mean the two lanes in that direction? How is that a two-lane stretch of road? Have to admit that I am bummed because I was looking forward to coffee from there more than donuts. And, notably, that building already has a drive-thru window in it.
From the linked article:
–“Community members also noted that the Dunkin’ Donuts on North Druid Hills, ChocoLaté at Clairmont and North Decatur Rds., and several coffee and donut shops in downtown Decatur all succeed without drive-throughs.”–
All of those coffee and donut shops are also accessible by sidewalks and this site is not. If the county wants to encourage “health and wellness” and reduce congestion,maybe it should look funding some supportive infrastructure, not just lip service.
Sorry, I am grumpy today and annoyed. I wish I could believe the improvements discussed in the Medline LCI study area were anything more than a pipe dream.
I think that either the Walmart or Fuqua developments are supposed to add a sidewalk connection down Scott Blvd to where it ends now.
Oh, I hope so. I thought the Wal-Mart plan was for sidewalks along Medlock and N. Decatur, had not heard anything about extending it along Scott.
Through negotiations with the nearby neighborhoods, Fuqua Development will be contributing funds to install sidewalks on Scott Blvd. And once the Medline LCI study is complete, the entire study area will be eligible for grants and funding to install sidewalks.
Too bad, I was looking forward to a decent bagel closer to Decatur. IMHO none of the bagel offerings in Decatur are that good. 3 decent places in Toco Hills (I know the concentration of Jewish residents is higher there). It would be nice to have one a little closer.
Dunkin Donuts has good bagels?
The bagels at Chocolate near Bicycle South aren’t bad. They aren’t allowed to say where they are from so my guess is Sam’s Club. Chocolate isn’t quite within COD borders but closer than Toco Hill.
True that Downtown Decatur needs some classic bagels. I like Duck’s food a lot but their bagels seem like hockey pucks to me.
This thread made me hungry for a bagel.. Guess I’ll walk the two blocks to the downtown Decatur bakery: Ratio and get a locally made one!
How are the bagels at Ratio? Haven’t tried them yet.
They are good, but sometimes the selection can be slim if it’s later.. Like lunch time.
They also make awesome quiche, pies and cakes!
Ridiculous. And of course, under the surface, it’s a class issue, just as the objections to Wal-Mart were transparently class-based. If this had been San Francisco coffee or Dancing Goats, selling $3 lattes and high-end pastries, I don’t think there would have been much objection. But DD selling cheap stuff to the middle and lower middle class? Not in our back yard!
Oh, please! Dancing Goats has $3 lattes? Guess I’ve been overpaying!
I agree with Dem, to an extent. But I think they have a point about the problems a drive-thru might create. Now if a drive-thru had not been part of the proposal, I’d 100 percent agree about it being class snobbery.
My big issue with this– and it’s BIG– is that Commissioners Gannon and Rader relied on a small sampling of neighbors to back their decision. The area neighborhood listservs sent out the info re Dunkin Donuts, and it drew little negative feedback (if any). The Commissioners didn’t attend the SLUP Community Meeting or reach out to the Cross-Neighborhoods Committee working on area development, but instead held small private meetings with 1-2 area reps, a few nearby neighbors, and GGD leadership. It’s not going to be an acceptable approach going forward.
As for traffic congestion, GDOT and DDOT reviewed the plans and did not see it as an issue.
*reply’s to brianc and DEM
It had nothing to do with the brand of coffee or donuts. The proposal would have sailed through without a drive-thru. In an effort to find a compromise, the applicant was asked to eliminate it, but they insisted it was necessary for business success. There is a condo directly behind the store and the drive-thru is not compatible with those residences.
The condos opted to accept the DD and had negotiated Conditions.
pollution? next to a six lane thoroughfare? a few cars idling next to a monstersection every morning is something to be worrying about? maybe i need to pay more attention, but this is the first time i’ve heard drive through pollution as a reason for anything.
I think traffic congestion is the bigger problem.
If you look at an aerial view of this lot, you will see condos right behind this building A drive thru with noise, lights, and pollution would have significantly affected them.
In addition, this building is where Scott narrows from 3 right lanes to 2. Trust me, there are already enough wrecks from people turning into the hardware store, eye doctor, liquor store etc to add more to the confusion.
I don’t know what ended up in the HOA’s final Conditions, but at the SLUP Meeting and in the broker’s emails, the franchisee said he’d do everything possible to minimize impact to the condos, including: installing a state of the art ordering speaker system that tops out at 15db over ambient sound and facing it away from the condos; adding a wall of mature plants on DD’s side and whatever landscaping or amenities (mature trees, tables, koi pond, etc) the condo owners wanted added to their side; and was willing to also install a soundproof barrier wall. No mechanicals or dumpster would’ve been near their property. Light shields would’ve been installed and aimed away from the neighbors’ property line (per DeKalb code). The car pollution’s there regardless (yes, it can be reduced, but this wasn’t ranked high on the HOA president’s list of concerns).
GDOT and DDOT were on board with doing away with the merge lane as an area safety improvement.
That portion is Scott boulevard is right where it narrows to two lanes. Cars exiting that location would turn into the two lane portion of the road. It is a mess in the early morning commute. Spilling into bordering neighborhoods. 40-80 thousand cars go through the Scott boulevard and north Decatur intersection each day. More will come with Wal-Mart. A drive through in that location on such a small lot would have put further stress on that location and set a precident for other lots in the area to have drive throughs.
Something else will come along and DD can find another location in the area if they want a drive through.
Obligatory cop wisecrack:
Now the Decatur Police can withdraw the annexation petition.
That portion is Scott boulevard is right where it narrows to two lanes. Cars exiting that location would turn into the two lane portion of the road. It is a mess in the early morning commute — spilling into bordering neighborhoods. 40-80 thousand cars go through the Scott boulevard and North Decatur intersection each day. More will come with Wal-Mart. A drive through in that location on such a small lot would have put further stress on that location and set a precedent for other lots in the area to have drive throughs.
DD can find another larger location that can handle their business in the area if they want a drive through.
One example of DD morning traffic: http://republicanherald.com/news/new-traffic-patterns-help-cars-flow-through-westwood-1.996316
I was told at Chocolate that they get their bagels from Goldbergs.