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During the April 22nd City Council meeting, the City Council unanimously approved a proposal for a McDonalds’s to be built in the Ranches area of Eagle Mountain. The proposal was the following, “This application is for a site plan for a McDonald’s restaurant located on Porter’s Crossing Town Center Lot 3, which is approximately 0.974 ac in size. The Porter’s Crossing development was approved by the City Council on May 3, 2011, along with a master site plan and preliminary plat (approved April 2011).”
The City Council did make one change to the plan. There was concern about traffic and the Council felt this addressed the issue. The primary concern expressed by multiple Councilmembers was the northeast access and potential for it to back up onto the private drive between the McDonald’s and Alpine Credit Union, and even onto Porter’s Crossing. Councilmember Love suggested we make the northeast access exit only. It was approved on the consent agenda adding an additional condition that the northeast access be exit only and the applicant place exit signs on that access
The building has approximately 5,057 sq feet of building space. The site will contain 32 parking stalls with 2 ADA stalls. The code requires 40 stalls for this specific site, but it is felt that the additional stalls are provided with it being adjacent to Porter’s Crossing Town Center. The plan showed lighting and it complies with the City’s dark sky ordinance. The sign should have a maximum height of 5 ft and should maintain consistency with the other signage in the development.
The Planning Commission previously approved the site plan with the following conditions. 1. The applicant shall add rock building materials to the building; 2. The monument sign shall comply with City requirements in regards to sign height, and the applicant shall add rock to match sign styles of neighboring businesses; ad3. The applicant shall remove the east side striping indicating the drive-thru. The summary of the proposal was prepared by Michael Hadley of the Eagle Mountain Planning department.
Holly Harwood, director of the Eagle Mountain Chamber of Commerce is excited about this announcement. “As Chamber Director, we promote business coming to the city. We think this is an exciting addition for our community and look forward to having McDonald’s in Eagle Mountain.”
I reached out to the City and contacted Aaron Sanborn, who is currently the Eagle Mountain Economic Development Director. I asked him a few questions about the process and his opinion on this project.
“With each new business that has come to Eagle Mountain City, we have seen residents respond by patronizing that business and we expect that this will be no different. This project will increase the sales tax revenue generated within the City, as well as increase property tax revenue. Due to McDonald’s being so highly known in the commercial real estate market, we expect that this will signal to other retailers that Eagle Mountain City is a wise investment for retail development and more businesses will follow.” This project has been in the works since September of 2019. When asked what the start date for construction would be, Aaron responded, “The company indicated to us that they would like to start construction as soon as possible. We will work with them on getting building permits approved in a timely manner.” “They hope to potentially be open for business before the year ends.” That means that this location could be selling food by the end of 2020.
I asked Aaron if COVID-19 had any effect on this project and if he thinks there will be any impact on future projects. “The current COVID-19 situation did not really impact the process for McDonald’s to this point. We have the ability to receive digital submissions of site plans and have tools already in place for staff to review those plans, provide needed feedback, and prepare them for approval by the Planning Commission and City Council all while working remotely. Both the Planning Commission and City Council receive approval documents digitally and they are able to review and ask questions as needed. Moving forward, there may be some impacts in the construction process due to COVID-19, depending on the availability of construction labor and McDonald’s business plans. Our building permits are another digital process that should not see any delays for the construction moving forward. ”
This is another great business that has moved into Eagle Mountain. As businesses come to the area it is hoped that others will follow.
Supporting Documents
McDonald’s Eagle Mountain Site Plan
Mike Kieffer is an IT geek by hobby and trade, with a BS in Information Systems & Technology. He is a proud father of 10, a grandpa, an author, a journalist, and internet publisher. His motto is to “Elevate, Inspire and Inform”, and he is politically conservative and a Christian. Mike has a passion for technology, writing, and helping others. With a wealth of experience, he is committed to sharing his knowledge with others to help them reach their full potential. He is known for his jackassery or his form of self-expression that encourages boldness, creativity, and risk-taking. It can be a way to push the boundaries and challenge traditional norms, leading to creative solutions and positive change.