Taco Bell finds a spot on Blythewood Road

BLYTHEWOOD – It has been rumored for over a year that a Taco Bell might be coming to Bly­thewood. A public hearing on Monday, Aug. 13, will confirm that rumor.

An application for the hearing before the town’s Board of Zoning Appeals (BZA) requests a variance to permit a reduction in the width of the buffer transition yards between adjoining commercially zoned lots at 209 Blythewood Road (Richland County TMS# R1-5112-03-01) so that a Taco Bell restaurant with a drive-thru can be built on that lot.

The permit comes to the BZA after being denied by the town’s zoning official on the grounds that the proposal would be in violation of the town’s zoning ordinance 155.384 (B) (2).

Town Council amended the town’s zoning or­dinance last year to allow fast food restaurants to have drive-thru service on the front side of the buildings located along Bly­thewood Road between Main Street and I-77.

For the BZA to grant the variance for the proposed Taco Bell property, the board must find that the ordinance will result in an unnecessary hardship on Taco Bell. The standards for granting a variance, as set by state law, and the or­dinance must meet five facts of finding.

Before the variance application can be heard by the BZA, a quazi-judicial board, all surrounding property own­ers must be notified by the Town and a public hearing is required.

Public testimony regarding the vari­ance application will be held at The Manor, at 6 p.m., Aug. 13.

A public notice of the meeting states that texts and documents related to this variance application are available for public inspection in the office of the Town Clerk at Blythewood Town Hall, 171 Langford Road, Blythewood, South Carolina, during regular work­ing hours, and also will be available at the public hearing.

Comments

  1. B. Ansley says

    There are already too many business entry points on that section of Blythewood road as it is. The town needs to consider the impact of traffic flow and the already hazardous conditions through that area. Narrowing of the variance to pack in a fast food chain doesn’t sound like a good idea to me. Perhaps they can look to the West side of I-77 and contribute to the hazardous traffic in front of Food Lion before the traffic circle is a reality. I hope the BZA won’t be afraid to say “no” to the concessions. Isn’t that how we got the apartment buildings teter- tottering over the edge of Main St.?

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