Design plans for an In-N-Out Burger restaurant on the corner of Main Street and 400 North in Logan have bee approved by the City Planning Commission.
LOGAN — At long last, Cache Valley seems destined to have an In-N-Out Burger restaurant.
At the regular meeting of the Logan City Council on Tuesday, council member Jeannie F. Simmonds confirmed that the proposed design of the restaurant had been unanimously approved by the City Planning Commission on Nov. 12 during what she described as “an exciting meeting.”
That approval, she said, came after the project proponents were able to successfully resolve concerns raised by members of the public and the Utah Department of Transportation about the restaurant’s potential to increase traffic congestion in one of Logan’s busiest intersections.
“As everyone already knows,” Simmonds said, “the new restaurant will be on the corner of 400 North and Main Street.”
The plan proposed by Cassie Yee, the project manager for In-N-Out Burger, calls for the new restaurant to be constructed at 404 North Main St. on a nearly one-acre lot formerly occupied by Nyla’s Shell Gas Station. Since state analysts believe more than 50,000 vehicles past that location each day, UDOT officials had initially objected to the idea of motorists accessing that property from either Main Street or 400 North.
Simmonds added that UDOT officials were also concerned that the number of vehicles using the restaurant’s drive-through window might negatively impact traffic flow.
The restaurant owner’s solution to those issues, Yee explained, is to block off all direct entrances to their property from both Main St. and 400 North. Customers will be obliged to approach the restaurant through the shopping center parking lot east of the proposed In-N-Out Burger.
“So there will be no entrances or exits to the restaurant directly from either Main St. or 400 North at the corner,” Simmonds told her fellow members of the city council. “The closest way that motorists will be able to get into the property from 400 North will be at mid-block between the corner and 100 East. The closest you’ll be able to get into it from Main St. will be the driveway north of the nearby Subway shop.”
While acknowledging that plan is less than ideal, city project manager Russ Holley added that the property owner’s proposal meets the requirements of Logan’s Town Center 1 zoning code in that area.
Yee’s proposal is for construction of a single-story, nearly 4,000-square-foot fast-food restaurant with a drive-through lane, a paved parking lot and landscaping. The restaurant’s primary entrance, an outdoor dining area, trash enclosures and parking will be located east of the new structure.
“There are six driveway locations that can access this proposed building,” according to the recently approved design proposal, “two on Main St., one on 500 North, two on 100 East and one on 400 North.
“These other driveway locations are further away from street intersections and create less vehicle conflicts because of increased horizontal distances.”
During Tuesday’s city council meeting, Holley added the restaurant’s plan would not impact a seventh nearby driveway off Main St. south of the Mandarin Gardens restaurant.
“People will turn where people will turn,” Simmonds admitted.
Building permits for the In-N-Out Burger are still pending, according to city officials.