IT has been part of the Bathurst Road landscape for more than 30 years, but the McDonald’s restaurant is set to make way for a more modern version.
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Owner Todd Bryant has applied to Orange City Council to demolish the building and build a replacement on the current car park, closer to Bathurst Road.
The store will have a similar floor size, but 40 fewer seats, leaving more room to cater for drive-through customers.
Mr Bryant said the franchise had evolved in the past three decades and the cost of ongoing maintenance and repairs also factored in.
“McCafe being an Australian brand, the restaurant wasn’t designed to have drive-through coffee,” he said.
“The efficiencies aren’t there, but we have the opportunity to fix that.”
He said the store was designed with Orange’s climate in mind – the plans on public exhibition show internal seating for 80 people, an enclosed play area with a capacity for 20 children, a drive-through with room for 17 cars and two waiting bays.
Construction would be staged to keep part of the restaurant and drive-through open at most times.
Part of the restaurant would be demolished to make way for the new building – the new premises would then be built before the old restaurant is completely demolished, followed by completion of the car park.
The car park would provide 33 spaces, a shortfall of seven, but the development application argued it was still an increase on the current 28 spaces, mitigated by a smaller seating capacity.
The DA considered noise and odour impacts minimal because the new development would be similar to the old business.
With entry and exit points planned for Bathurst Road, the DA said traffic on Glenroi Avenue would fall slightly.
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The DA indicated an 80-year-old black spruce tree would have to be removed during the work.
While the young mature tree was considered healthy, the arborist’s report indicated it had limited root space and was not planted during the construction of historic Glenroi House.
The homestead was built in 1876 and later became a restaurant for a neighbouring motel before making way for the current McDonald’s drive-through.
Mr Bryant hoped, subject to approval, construction could start next year, taking three to four months.
“I have confidence in the economy of Orange and I want to build a restaurant to allow it to grow,” he said.
Public submissions will close on August 24, with council staff to assess the proposal.