With New Hotel, More Projects Planned Near Chick-fil-A, What Will Happen To US-31 Traffic?

The opening of Chick-fil-A in Traverse City last week – a long-anticipated launch that generated significant traffic backups and 1-2 hour waits for food – is actually one of two projects planned for the US-31 property. A new hotel is planned to be built right behind Chick-fil-A, and other proposed developments – including a drive-thru coffee shop next to Best Buy that will be discussed by Garfield Township planning commissioners tonight (Wednesday) – could impact traffic in the surrounding corridor. So how will that traffic be managed? From rear service drives to turn movement restrictions to increased stacking capacity at businesses, The Ticker looks at some of the options being considered by local and state leaders.

When Chick-fil-A submitted project plans for its new location at 2700 North US-31 between the Williams KIA and Williams Honda dealerships last year, the application noted that a second development phase would follow restaurant construction: a hotel to be built on the rear of the property, with a shared drive between the two businesses. Garfield Township Planning Director John Sych says conversations with hotel developers indicate “they’re looking to complete that (project) sooner rather than later,” with likely a 90-100-room hotel slated for the property (the hotel brand has not yet been announced). The project is a use-by-right, meaning it doesn’t require special township approval. However, given the traffic impacts already being seen at Chick-fil-A, Sych says the township will likely require a traffic impact study as part of staff’s site plan review.

One solution likely to alleviate traffic at both Chick-fil-A and the hotel is a planned new service drive that would connect from the rear of the businesses over to the intersection light at Lowe’s. That would allow drivers multiple ways to access the hotel and restaurant, including from a signalized light, instead of just the one driveway off US-31. “That’s something the township has been trying to facilitate, but we’re relying on the various property owners for (the service drive) to be developed,” Sych says.

Both Lowe’s and Chick-fil-A have already agreed to the service drive. Sych would like to see it continue up to the Grand Traverse Mall, but says it’s been more challenging coordinating with property owners in that section of the route. Nonetheless, the hotel development would likely be the triggering event for the drive to be built from at least Chick-fil-A to Lowe’s. “Under the traffic conditions being generated, (the hotel developers) would be looking for an alternate entrance and exit, so we’re hopeful that will start the conversation of the drive,” Sych says.

Other solutions could help alleviate traffic in the meantime. Sych says when Chick-fil-A’s special use permit (SUP) was approved, the site plan showed double-lane drive-thrus throughout the restaurant site – all the way from the ordering point to food pick-up – holding up to 52 cars during peak traffic times. When Sych went to Chick-fil-A last week to observe traffic, he saw “a single lane through the back of the property, then dual lanes for ordering, and then a single lane again for pick-up.” He adds that Chick-fil-A is still training new employees and will hopefully be able to expand capacity to handle more vehicles as more staff come on board. “Ideally at full operation capacity, they would have the double lanes all the way through,” he says.

Chick-fil-A is required to address the traffic issue no matter what: Garfield Township’s zoning code restricts vehicles spilling out into the roadway from drive-thru businesses. “The township can fine them, or revoke the SUP, or revisit the SUP to resolve the issue, so there is that provision,” Sych says. However, since the restaurant has only been open a few days, township staff are monitoring the situation to see if the traffic surge is primarily related to the grand opening or turns into a persistent challenge. If the latter, the township would try to work collaboratively with both Chick-fil-A and the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT), which regulates US-31 traffic, on solutions first before more punitive measures were considered.

For example, Chick-fil-A contracted with the Grand Traverse Sheriff’s Office over opening weekend to direct traffic and temporarily banned left-turn movements to improve flow. Permanently restricting left turns could be one solution, if a service drive and/or extended dual lanes served by more employees doesn’t work. Simply allowing traffic backups to continue on US-31 would not be an option, Sych says. “The condition of Chick-fil-A (seen last week) is not something that can be sustained or permanent,” he says. “We’re working to resolve that. The developers have to adhere to the zoning requirements.” (Chick-fil-A representatives could not be reached for comment.)

In the meantime, other growth is targeted for the US-31 corridor in the near vicinity of Chick-fil-A. Township planning commissioners tonight will hold a conceptual review – or an informal first look at a project, with no action planned – on a new proposed drive-thru coffee shop at the former PNC Bank property at 2537 North US-31 between the Speedway and Mutual gas stations by Best Buy. The existing building would be demolished and a new 510-square-foot coffee shop built, to be serviced almost entirely by a drive-thru. “There will be no internal access to the building for customers; however, there will be a pavilion area with a picnic table on one side of the building for potential customer use,” wrote project representative John Schebaum. Conceptual drawings show a Seven Brew coffee shop at the site, which is a drive-thru chain with locations throughout the Midwest and South, though none yet in Michigan, according to the company’s website.

Sych says that even discounting the opening of Chick-fil-A, traffic flow could be problematic at the coffee shop. The business doesn’t have cross-access to Speedway or Best Buy, meaning the only entry point would be off US-31 through a shared driveway with Mutual. “Safe ingress and egress for the site remains a concern by the township,” township staff wrote in a memo to planning commissioners. Staff added that “it may be difficult to enforce a right-in, right-out driveway since a shared driveway has already been established.” Sych says that just like Chick-fil-A, the coffee shop would go through a SUP process since it has a drive-thru, which means planning commissioners have a say in whether the project is right for the site and can set parameters on the application if they do allow it to move forward. “We have to see if it’s a viable project,” Sych says.