Monday, April 07, 2014

Macon Company Files Plans For Cheddar’s Restaurant In Oconee County’s Epps Bridge Centre

More Pressure For Liquor Referendum

C&P Company of Macon has submitted preliminary site plans to the Oconee County Planning Department for a Cheddar’s Restaurant on Epps Bridge Parkway as part of Epps Bridge Centre.

The plans call for a 8,465-square-foot building seating 324 persons and with 206 parking spaces spread across parts of two of the mall’s 12 outparcels. It also would include an outdoor patio seating 60 persons.

Site Of Proposed Cheddar's

The restaurant will join two others in the mall, the recently opened Taqueria Tsunami Restaurant and a restaurant in the University 16 Cinema. Both have beer and wine licenses. Cheddar’s serves steaks, chicken, seafood, burgers, salads and desserts.

The filing of the site plans on March 31 follows an email message sent to the Oconee County Commissioners by C&P co-owner Allen Peake saying he was interested in a site in the county but, without a liquor license, locating a restaurant in the county would be “economically unfeasible.”

Bishop Call For Referendum

Peake has joined others involved in the development of Epps Bridge Centre in calling for a change in the county’s liquor laws.

Frank Bishop, developer of the mall, used his keynote speech at the Oconee County Chamber of Commerce earlier this year to ask the Commissioners to put a referendum allowing liquor by the drink on the ballot.

Peake is a Republican member of the Georgia House of Representatives from Macon and secretary/treasurer of the House Majority Caucus.

He unsuccessfully championed legislation in the just-completed session that would have allowed the medical use of marijuana.

He said in his email to the Commissioners that he was co-owner of Cheddar’s Casual Café restaurant franchise in Georgia. His partner is Mike Chumbley, according to the company web site.

Cheddar’s is headquartered in Irving, Texas.

Front On Epps Bridge Parkway

Although the site plans show the Cheddar’s restaurant fronting on Epps Bridge Parkway, access would be via two driveways off the roadway inside the mall running from the Parkway to the main shopping complex.

Sixty parking spaces would be located in front of the restaurant, with the remaining 146 in the rear.

The restaurant would be configured in such a way as to leave additional land facing Epps Bridge Parkway for future development.

If the site plans are approved and the project moves forward, this would be only the second project on an outparcel in the shopping mall.

4 comments:

Beanne said...

Republicans in favor of both marijuana and alcohol. Will wonders never cease.

Anonymous said...

Sign to the tune of "She'll be coming around the Mountain"

Liquors coming to Oconee, Yes it is!
Liquors coming to Oconee, Yes it is!
Liquors coming to Oconee cause the church folks all are phony
Liquors coming to Oconee, Yes it is!

Anonymous said...

Mr. Bishop if you really wanted alcohol why didn't you just be honest and ask for the referendum prior to building?

For the life of me I can't understand why people would move here then just want to change such a great place to what they moved away from?

Anonymous said...

We are well on our way to becoming Gwinnett County: Overcrowded schools, busy traffic, boring subdivisions, strip malls, chain restaurants, no commuter rail, no worthy public spaces, no identity, no personality, no different than any other poorly planned county in the U.S.

Nice job Melvin. You're getting what you want, and will be long out of office when these problems are beyond solution.