The Tucker City Council at its June 10 meeting voted 5-2 on second reading to approve a special land use permit that would allow a new restaurant to install double drive-through lanes.
Councilman Vinh Nguyen and councilwoman Alexis Weaver were the dissenting votes, while Mayor Frank Auman, Roger Orlando, Virginia Rece, Cara Schroeder and Amy Trocchi supported the SLUP application for Jim ‘N Nick’s Bar-B-Q, which is under construction. The restaurant is located in an Northlake Mall outparcel at 4800 Briarcliff Road NE.
Jim ‘N Nicks, which began in Birmingham, AL. in 1985, has 48 locations throughout the southeast. Its menu features slow-cooked pork, turkey and beef, along with traditional homestyle side dishes.
The council had discussed the proposal at its May 13 meeting. City Planner Matthew Couper-Gardner again made a brief presentation to the council regarding the permit application.
Couper-Gardner said the restaurant is one of several new or relocated businesses around Northlake Mall. The double-drive through lane must adhere to several stipulations, including screening selected areas with either a hedge or wall.
Weaver mentioned during discussion that the proposal didn’t fit into the criteria defined in the city’s Town Center Character Area and the city’s comprehensive plan.
“I have really significant concerns around the precedents this sets around drive-throughs and around orienting to automobiles,” Weaver said.
“My sense is that it doesn’t meet with all the criteria, but it meets some of it,” Rece said. “Not every project fits exactly in the box.”
Nguyen concurred with Weaver, saying he has “wrestled with this back and forth.”
“We can all appreciate Jim ‘N Nicks going above and beyond, accommodating the pedestrian access and lighting to make the area safer,” Nguyen said. “But I want us to be cautious about future SLUPs of this type, especially in the Northlake area.”
One speaker, during public comment, said he opposed the application, saying it went against the original strategy of developing walkability in the area.
The council also passed on second read 7-0 the 2024-25 budget that had some minor adjustments after its first reading on May 28. Auman and several others thanked the city’s finance department for its hard work in developing and refining this year’s budget.
“This was a Herculean effort,” Orlando said. “For some reason this has been an especially difficult budget.”
In other action:
- the council heard that economic development department has awarded Incisive LLC a $25,000 contract to produce a written and digital pitch deck to promote the city and its activities.
- Auman recognized the city’s municipal court clerks for their service.
- the panel voted on first read a rollback of the millage rate by 2.096 to reflect a revenue-neutral tax digest.