A taco shop has received approval from the Queen Creek Town Council to have a 24-hour drive-thru window near a residential area.
On Wednesday, Feb. 1, the council unanimously voted to give a conditional use permit to Rili B’s to operate its 24-hour drive-thru in the Heritage Square commercial center east of the northeast corner of Ellsworth and Heritage Loop roads. The 2,290-square-foot taco shop is currently under construction.
The conditional use permit is required for drive-thru restaurants that operate any time between the hours of 10 p.m. and 6 a.m. when located within 300 feet from residentially zoned property.
Approximately 185 feet from the south building entrance of the Rili B’s drive-thru restaurant are the Encantada Apartments. The drive-thru lane and ordering menu board are 226 feet from the property line of the Encantada Apartments and 267 feet from the apartments.
“The site has been designed to locate the drive-thru lane and menu board/speaker box at the north side of the building, thereby using the building as a physical structure to create a separation between vehicles at the drive-thru and the apartments,” according to a staff report.
Creating additional separation between the drive-thru restaurant and the apartments is Heritage Loop Road. Also, a low-screen wall to match the commercial center’s screen wall will be constructed at the south end of the site.
“When we created this stipulation it was because we had some businesses that were causing problems for the neighbors and it was a much closer situation than 300 feet,” said Council Member Robin Benning. “We felt pretty comfortable when we implemented this ordinance that 300 feet would allow us to review projects and if there was a problem, we could vet the problem and try to figure out if there was a better solution. In this case we could see that you do have a significant distance. Even though you’re within the 300 feet, you’re not going to be close enough to be a problem.”
We’d like to invite our readers to submit their civil comments, pro or con, on this issue. Email AZOpinions@iniusa.org.
Janet Perez News Editor | Queen Creek &
San Tan Valley @AzNewsmedia
Meet Janet Janet Perez joined Independent Newsmedia as editor of the Queen Creek Independent and Florence Independent in 2020. She started her career in 1989 with the Gannett-owned El Paso Times. In 1992, she moved to Tempe and has worked in newspapers, magazines, radio and television. She left Arizona for three years to work at New Mexico State University and Baylor University before returning to work at Arizona State University. Missing the business, she went back to journalism in 2017.
Community: A long-time pet owner, she supports animal welfare causes.
Education: University of Texas at El Paso with a BA in journalism and a minor in political science.
Random Fact: She had a head full of random facts.
Hobbies: Reading, watching documentaries, cooking and playing with her dogs.
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