FERNDALE — Washington’s second Sonic Drive-In may be coming to Ferndale as part of a proposed commercial development along Main Street, according to plans submitted to the city.
Architectural drawings show what appears to be a Sonic Drive-In as part of a development that includes five buildings totaling more than 40,000 square feet of space. The development, called Northern Village, is located on about 5½ acres at 1851 Main St., between Haggen and Walgreens.
There are more than 3,000 Sonic Drive-Ins, but the nearest one is located in Hillsboro, Ore., about 225 miles away, according to Sonic’s Web site. In Washington, the popular fast-food chain can only be found in one spot in Spokane.
Ferndale city planner Jori Burnett said developers Troy Muljat and Kent Thomas didn’t tell him which tenants would come into the development, but they said they have some lined up. Drawings also show plans for a Woods Coffee.
Muljat, Thomas and a Sonic Drive-In spokesperson could not be reached for comment Friday.
The entire Northern Village development is expected to generate 109 trips during the evening rush hour and 1,160 daily, according to a Dec. 15 traffic study. The Haggen and Walgreens developments together generate about 4,657 trips per day, so this development would result in a onequarter increase in traffic.
City staff are recommending to the hearing examiner, who must approve the project, that the developers be required to alter the access road from Main Street to Haggen to prevent left-hand turns in and out, close an existing driveway near the corner and add an eastbound right turn lane there, Burnett said. The developers, KT Development LLC, will also be required to construct an access road that bisects the development between Haggen and Walgreens so shoppers can travel between stores, he said.
“That takes their car out of that Main Street traffic,” Burnett said.
The project would include 146 parking spaces, according to the plans. Impact fees that KT Development will have to pay haven’t been determined yet. The city will calculate them before building permits are issued, Burnett said.
The City Council on Jan. 7 will hold a hearing on a plan to swap right-of-way abutting the project along Main Street in exchange for gaining the right for the public to drive on the road bisecting the development, Burnett said. City staff is recommending that the development be conditioned on that exchange.
Burnett said the development, designed by Carletti Architects of Mount Vernon, reflects high design standards required by city code.
“It’s an attractive shopping center,” he said. “I think that’s going to be a kind of logical addition to that area.”