A new McDonald’s fast food restaurant may be coming to the Grandview area in east Durango.
Durango Planning Commission approved the chain’s preliminary development plan with conditions during its Feb. 27 meeting.
According to the plans submitted by McDonald’s, the proposed building would be 4,806 square feet in size. The desired lot is vacant and accessible through two entrances off Zyme Rock Road near the Maverik gas station and the roundabout that ties in with the Grandview interchange.
Conditions for approval include McDonald’s obtaining a stormwater management plan from the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment before any land disturbance on the parcel. addition, the building design must comply with the commercial design guidelines as determined by the city and completion of all required public improvements must be secured through a public improvements agreement.
The McDonald’s proposal calls for three different drive-thru windows. Most McDonald’s locations have a window where customers pay and then a separate window where they pick up food.
Jessica McCallum, with the engineering consultant group Kimley-Horn and Associates Inc., is working with McDonald’s on the project and said during the Feb. 27 meeting that the location will add a third window for larger orders and a “roll-forward” lane that can fit three cars that are waiting for orders that take longer.
Some Planning Commission members were concerned about whether long drive-thru lines could impact traffic near the roundabout in the interchange.
However, the plan calls for a drive-thru lane that is wide enough to allow drivers to pull past other waiting cars once they have received their food to avoid traffic from backing up in the drive-thru lane.
If approved, McDonald’s will be the second business to move into in the area after the Maverik station opened on Zyme Rock Road last year.
A McDonald’s representative did not immediately respond to a request for comment Monday.
The Durango Herald also attempted to contact the city’s planning department for comment but did not receive an immediate response.
Based on averages from Indeed.com, the McDonald’s location could add another 22 to 25 jobs to Durango’s economy.
Now that the preliminary development plan has been approved by the planning commission, Durango City Council will vote whether to move forward with the development process.
tbrown@durangoherald.com
