By: Kristyne E. Demske | St. Clair Shores Sentinel | Published June 24, 2015


ST. CLAIR SHORES — Plans are proceeding for a new Taco Bell restaurant on Harper Avenue, near Little Mack Avenue, to be one of the first in the country with a new design that encourages “selfies” and has an open kitchen plan.



City Council was asked to approve a drive-thru and a site plan for the building June 15.



City Planner Liz Koto said that there would be three drive approaches, but two would be marked as exit only. The drive-thru would be placed on the Little Mack side of the property and would have a “smart speaker,” which would be able to tell when traffic is louder and increase or decrease its volume accordingly.



The restaurant is planned to be open from 7 a.m.-3 a.m. on weekdays and from 7 a.m.-4 a.m. on the weekends, and would also have a small outdoor patio with about a dozen seats.



The motion approving a drive-thru passed unanimously.



“We’re in a race with a store outside Seattle, Washington, to be No. 2 ... in the country” with the new concept, said Construction Manager Jim McNally.



He explained that the restaurant would have an open kitchen concept where customers can see their order being prepared. There would be even more windows along the drive-thru where those customers can have the same experience.

The inside would look different than what customers expect from Taco Bell right now, too, he said, with new flooring, an open ceiling space and new LED lighting. There would also be a map of Michigan painted on the side of the building with a “You are here” arrow pointing to St. Clair Shores.



“The idea is for people to stand in front of it, take their selfies, see how many you can get,” McNally said.



The first of this new concept was built in Indiana.



McNally said there would be lots of new building materials on the restaurant, including a cementitious board that looks like wood and a similar stamped board that resembles painted brick. He said they were trying to be environmentally friendly with the design, which would allow in enough light to leave dining room lights off at times.



But the different exterior materials drew criticism from Councilman Chris Vitale, who said that the Harper overlay specifies unpainted brick, not painted brick, and that he wondered why they would use a newer, untested material instead of brick on the building.



“At some point, it may become something else, and that next occupant may not have the capital to maintain it,” Vitale said. “I can’t really go for anything but brick. I don’t know how these will look in 50 years, but I know brick.”



But his motion approving the site plan as long as brick was placed on the facade instead of a brick panel did not receive any support.



Councilman Peter Rubino pointed out that it was actually up to the Zoning Board of Appeals to approve any change in materials, not City Council.



“We may want to argue over the materials, but that’s why we have the ZBA to give those variances,” he said.



“Thank you for coming here. This is a site that hasn’t been operating for a while, and it needs something new. When you see the new building, now I’m a little more excited. Something different and a little bit unique for us.”



City Council approved the site plan 6-1, with Vitale voting against the plan.



Vitale asked McNally if Taco Bell would proceed with the project if it was required to change the materials it is using.



“It’s up to our corporate folks — it’s not up to Jim McNally, sorry,” he answered. He said they are aiming to begin demolition of the existing car wash later this summer, with construction to start in August and finish by Thanksgiving, if all variances and plans are approved by the city.