McDonald’s coming to Morrison next year: Fast-food chain’s been eyeing the city for 10 years
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MORRISON – McDonald’s plans to break ground on a $400,000 restaurant on the east end of town early next spring.
Development company STW Morrison, a local branch for Platinum Realty in Dubuque, Iowa, pitched its plan to the City Council Monday. It wants to build a 3,000-square-foot restaurant with an attached 1,700-square-foot retail space on the now-vacant lot at 606 E. Lincolnway.
The council gave Platinum owner Tom Kelzer a unanimous yes vote for permits and zoning variances Monday night. He wants to start construction as soon as the ground thaws next year.
Once the 4,700-square-foot building is done, Kelzer and project partner Steve Moore will remain owners, with McDonald’s as their tenant. The smaller attached storefront will be for lease through STW Morrison, Kelzer said.
While uncertain of how many jobs the fast-food chain would bring, two similar projects Kelzer has worked on have resulted in 15 to 20 full- and part-time positions.
McDonald’s corporate had spent nearly a decade eyeing Morrison, Moore said.
Corporate officials at Iowa-based Casey’s General Stores Inc. opposed the zoning request.
A memo on Casey’s letterhead presented to Morrison’s Planning and Zoning Board of Appeals said the corporate office “would like to submit their objection to this request.” No reason was given.
The two zoning variances the council afforded McDonald’s are a 72-foot setback from the highway over the regular 50-foot maximum, and five storefront signs, Zoning Board President Bob Gale said.
City officials said they have yet to estimate how much sales and property tax revenue the new fast-food restaurant would generate, but Administrator Tim Long said “these types of businesses tend to give everybody a lift.”
“Conventional wisdom says it’s a zero-sum game – that there’s only so much money in Morrison for fast food ... but studies have shown that big chains like this move the overall bottom line up,” Long said.
Long also is hopeful that the fast-food giant’s decision to open in Morrison will give other retailers an appetite to build in the city.
“McDonald’s really does their homework, and when a McDonald’s opens up, everybody else starts to look around.”
City OKs construction bills, changes meeting
Also Monday, the Morrison City Council:
- Approved $46,700 in construction bills for reseeding and irrigation at the sports complex. The project’s running total now stands at about $3.7 million.
Cost overruns and architectural redesigns have plagued the project’s public image since the council opted to expand the park’s scope last year.
City Administrator Tim Long said Monday, “We’re close; we’re very close.” Before the park can open for baseball season next year, however, the council still needs to buy thousands of dollars worth of equipment, including mowers, baseball bases, pitchers mounds and field grooming tools, he said.
“We will have to prioritize,” Long said of paying for the equipment.
- Voted to change the next meeting to a so-called work session with the aim of shortening the overall meeting duration.
Under Illinois law, the change will limit the council to discussion only of topics published on its meeting agenda but will afford the council latitude to discuss items in any order members choose, City Attorney Lester Weinstine said.
Any items the council plans to vote on will have to be published separately on the agenda as a separate business item, Weinstine said.
Alderwoman Sarah Thorndike cast the only no vote. Her reason: “It’s a waste of time,” she said. “If we’re going to all the trouble to meet and publish an agenda, what’s the point?”
- Received a project update on winterization of 101 W. Main St.
To date, contractors are $12,500 under the original $244,500 project budget with a completion date of Dec. 9.
So far, work completed on the city-owned building includes asbestos abatement, relocation of scaffolding to accommodate exterior construction, all necessary demolition and new foundation footings and basement walls.
Looking ahead, contractors plan to install a new steel storefront next week, install new floor joists on the north and south ends of the building on Nov. 17 and complete masonry work Nov. 18-24.
