No bypass lane: Why Prince William’s first Sonic will need a waiver

PRINCE WILLIAM COUNTY — The first Sonic restaurant in Prince William County is on track to be built near Interstate 66.

The county Planning Commission is slated to hear the case for the new drive-in that specializes in everything from hamburgers, hotdogs, tater tots, and frozen non-alcoholic drinks. The hearing, originally set for Wednesday but postponed due to snow, is rescheduled for 7 p.m. Wednesday, March 6.

The restaurant will be located at 10850 Promenade Lane, on the Corner of Sudley Road (Route 234) and Balls Ford Road, on just over an acre of land. It will replace the old Burger King that was built in 1994. It moved across the street last year into a newly built, free-standing restaurant.

The restaurant will feature a drive-through window and six ordering stations that will allow drivers to get curbside food service. Sonic needs approval from the county for a special-use permit for the drive-through window, something that is common for new fast-food restaurants.

Since the old Burger King drive-through was built before a change in county zoning code in 2000, Sonic needs to obtain new approval from the county, according to Planning Commission documents.

Zoning officials have outlined problems with the planned Sonic drive-through, which they say can’t be fixed. Zoning requirements call for what’s called a bypass lane for the drive-throughs, for cases when the driver changes their mind, doesn’t want the food, and wants to pull their car out of the line.

Sonic told the county that a slope along the right side of the drive-through land bordering Balls Ford Road would make it impossible to add the bypass lane without taking away open space for outdoor seating, “which is a desired component of community design by the [Prince William County] Planning Office.”

The old Burger King didn’t have one, either. So, planning officials have called for issuing a waiver.

Not only would the Sonic be the first in the county — Stafford County already has one —  Prince William Planning officials also say the restaurant supports the county’s goal of a “robust economy.”

But adds the hamburger joint doesn’t conform with the long-range land use map designation of Regional Employment Center. Under it, the plan calls for mid-rise and high-rise office, research and development facilities. Drive-throughs are also discouraged in Regional Employment Center areas.

But, the restaurant would conform with the “existing character of the area” inside a big-box retail center that houses a Home Depot, a large furniture store, and once housed a Walmart.

Once the Planning Commission weighs in, the project will advance to the Board of County Supervisors for approval.

Also postponed from Wednesday’s Planning Commission meeting was a work session on the Marine Corps Base Quantico Joint Land Use Study. It has been rescheduled for March 20.

Underway since 2013, the study has looked at existing land uses around the Marine Corps Base and how they could impact the future of the base.