The landscaping and look of two Gravity Coffee restaurants on McKellips Road in Mesa — one with two drive-thru lanes — were discussed at a recent meeting of the Mesa Design Review Board.
A 1-acre site with two drive-thru lanes is east of Lindsay Road on the south side of McKellips Road, Staff Planner Chloe Durfee Daniel said at the board’s Tuesday, Jan. 10 meeting.
“The site plan includes a 756-square-foot building, which is a drive-thru-only facility. And the drive-thru does have lanes on both sides of the building,” she said.
The restaurant is only 14- to 21-feet tall, Jere Planck. founder and managing partner of Archicon Architecture & Interiors LC, said.
“It’s a very, very small footprint,” he said. “We’ve got a 23-car drive-thru, so very, very large. There’s no walk-up and there’s no squawk box. So, if they get too long of a line, they would bring somebody up with an iPad to take orders.”
Tim Rasnake is the applicant. Jeff Kost is the owner.
The site will be accessed from a new driveway to McKellips Road on the north side of the site, according to a written project narrative from Archicon Architecture & Interiors LC.
“There is no indoor public area or outdoor public dining area. This is a drive-thru use only. Two drive-thru lanes will be provided and both will serve the vehicles directly. There is no need for a solo driver dedication,” it states. “The Gravity brand prides itself on personal customer service and the drink stands are designed specifically to have personal interaction with the vehicles from either the driver or passenger side of the car.”
A 1-acre site with one drive-thru lane is north of McKellips Road and west of Center Street, Staff Planner Samantha Brannagan said.
Rasnake is the applicant. Ibnoor Management LLC is the owner.
The site will be accessed from one drive along McKellips Road and one drive along Center Street. The east driveway on McKellips Road will be removed. Driveways will be improved as required to meet current city of Mesa standards, according to a second written project narrative from Archicon Architecture & Interiors LC.
“A 3-foot-4-inch high (concrete masonry unit) screen wall will be provided along the frontages of McKellips Road and Center Street to screen the drive-thru lane and parking areas,” it states.
Washington-based Gravity Coffee also has plans for sites at the southeast corner of Power and Baseline roads and at 2129 W. Southern Ave. in Mesa, according to gravitycoffee.com.
The all-volunteer Mesa Design Review Board is unique in that its composition is set by the zoning ordinance to include two architects; two from other design professions such as landscape architecture, engineering, urban planning, interior design or other design-related background; one contractor or developer; and two residents, according to the city’s website.
Richard Dyer Managing Editor | East Valley @RHDyer
Meet Richard Richard Dyer has worked at Independent Newsmedia Inc. USA since 1987, starting his career in Apache Junction as a copy editor and being promoted over the years to work as the editor of the Mesa Independent, news services editor for the East Valley office in Apache Junction, managing editor for the East Valley office, news services editor for the East Valley office and eventually also for the newspapers at INI’s then-Chandler office, managing editor again and as a news editor covering Apache Junction/Gold Canyon and Queen Creek. He helped start the Florence Independent while the news editor covering Apache Junction and Mesa news. In January 2023, he became associate managing editor for the East Valley newspapers and in August 2023 became managing editor for the East Valley newspapers of Chandler/Tempe, Gilbert, Queen Creek, Florence, Mesa and Apache Junction/Gold Canyon, while also reporting on Mesa and Apache Junction/Gold Canyon.
Community: Since 2009, he has worked as a volunteer to design The Blue Guitar Magazine, Blue Guitar Jr. magazine and Unstrung magazine, which are projects of The Arizona Consortium for the Arts; and since 2014, has been overseeing the art submissions.
Education: University of Arizona with a master of arts in journalism and a bachelor of science in agricultural communication. Also continuing education at Mesa Community College in welding in a metal art sculpture class.
Random fact: Saw his first tornado on May 31, 2010, which was classified as an EF-2, as part of a stormchasing tour group.
Hobbies: He is an artist of welded-steel sculptures, selling his artwork at juried and non-juried art shows.
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