Businesses tell planning commission they want drive-thrus

By JANE MCCLURE

 

How St. Paul should regulate new drive-thru services is in the hands of a planning commission committee. A June 7, 2024 public hearing was dominated by foes of proposed city regulations, including restaurant company, business and hospitality industry representatives.

One proposal before the planning commission would limit where new drive-thrus could go and what kinds of businesses could have them. Another option would be a total ban on new drive-thrus.

Existing business would be grandfathered in.

The public hearing brought out a range of written opinions and in-person testimony, with opponents outnumbering supporters at the public hearing. Several people spoke against banning new drive-thru services downtown and in traditional neighborhood-zoned areas.

 Angie Whitcomb, president and CEO of the statewide group Hospitality Minnesota, urged the planning commission to step back from the proposal. “Please go back to the drawing board and engage with the hospitality industry,” she said.

Zachary Zelickson of Border Foods said his company would oppose a total ban. Border Foods operates Taco Bell restaurants in St. Paul and other restaurants throughout the region, including the Taco Bell in Hamline-Midway on North Snelling Avenue. That restaurant sparked years of controversy over its drive-thru operations, especially late at night.

Industry trends indicate that more consumers use drive-thrus to get food. “Year after year those numbers increase for us,” he said. More than 80 percent of customers use drive-thru services with his company.

Not allowing restaurants to reconfigure drive-thru services would mean keeping dated infrastructure in place, and could inadvertently cause more problems in the long run. Zelickson asked city officials to consider a case-by-case approach with drive-thrus.

The planning commission also heard from McDonald’s and Starbucks, opposing the proposed regulations. Starbucks a few years ago shut down a drive-thru at Snelling and Marshall avenues, bringing an end to long traffic tie-ups.

Land use attorney and former Planning Commission Chairman Brian Alton urged the commission to not be overly restrictive with new drive-thrus and with proposed design changes to allow vehicle stacking. He said it is short-sighted to not allow new drive-thru downtown, as is proposed. Drive-thrus remain a “popular and convenient” option for people wanting food and other services.

St. Paul Area Chamber of Commerce Vice President for Governmental Affairs Amenda Duerr said the chamber wasn’t notified about the change and only learned of it by seeing the June 7 agenda. 

Duerr and others made several point for drive-thru services. One point made is that drive-thrus are often the only food option for night shift workers. Another is that curbside delivery of food, especially at night, can pose safety issues for workers. The issues raised were convenience for families and people with disabilities.

The only person to testify for the changes was former planning commission member Bill Lindeke. He said that drive-thrus take away from the experience people should have of getting out of their vehicles and patronizing local businesses.

“The second you put a drive-thru in, that business becomes an island,” said Lindeke.

The study of drive-thrus is tied to the 2040 comprehensive plan and the desire to make the city more walkable. Another impetus is problem drive-thru, such as one that was at the Snelling and Marshall Starbucks.

Drive-thru services are usually found at fast-food restaurants, coffee shops, banks and pharmacies. St. Paul has about 77 businesses with drive-thrus, including 36 restaurants, two coffee shops, 31 banks, and eight pharmacies, out of a total of about 640 restaurants, 51 coffee shops, 40 banks and 17 pharmacies.

Since March 2020, city officials have approved site plans and/or conditional use permits for three new drive-thrus, for two banks and a coffee shop. Also approved were at least five drive through reconstructions or redesigns, all for fast food restaurants.

Motor vehicle off-site queuing that blocks sidewalks, bike lanes, or traffic lanes were cited as reasons to restrict drive-thru services. Exhaust from idling vehicles, noise and challenges with pedestrian access in reaching a business were also cited in the city staff report.

Under the St. Paul proposal, new drive-thru services would be banned in some parts of the city and still allowed in others.

New drive-thru services would be banned in the downtown central business district. In areas zoned for traditional neighborhoods use, including several arterial streets, new drive-thrus would be limited to banks and pharmacies.

Design requirements are proposed, with additional motor vehicle waiting or “stacking” spaces and design of businesses’ pedestrian access in a way that shields pedestrians from crossing a drive-thru lane on foot or with a mobility device.

Also, the planning commission is asked to consider prohibiting drive-thru lanes and their driveway access points in traditional neighborhood districts within 300 feet of transit-way stations. Transit-ways include light rail, bus rapid transit, arterial bus rapid transit and modern streetcar, but not regular route bus lines.