Shelton Planning and Zoning Commission members have asked Chick-fil-A to rethink the design of its proposed restaurant at 801 Bridgeport Ave.
At issue for the P&Z is the façade of the restaurant, part of a planned nine-building development called Fountain Square LLC. Several commission members maintained that the design was not visually appealing and, therefore, would not serve as a lure for Fountain Square shoppers, as intended.
Plans are for Fountain Square to include three restaurants, a Marriott Residence Inn and 31,000 square feet composed of retail, a bank, office space, a coffee shop and a pharmacy. A small park is also planned for the center of the project. Plans further call for a traffic light to be erected at the intersection of Parrot Drive and Bridgeport Avenue.
Fountain Square developers said they would huddle with Chick-fil-A about possibly altering its design, though they cautioned that getting national retailers ”“ which usually employ what is essentially the same model for all their stores ”“ to agree to such changes can be difficult.
This is the second time in the last few weeks that Chick-fil-A has run into problems with plans to add more Fairfield County locations. In August, the Georgia-based chain withdrew its proposal for a restaurant with a drive-through in Stamford”™s Bull”™s Head neighborhood in the face of public opposition.
Presently, the chicken chain operates restaurants in Brookfield, Danbury and Norwalk.
