City council, board of works discusses H&R alley drive-thru

By: 
Staff Writer Becky Killian

A plan to allow a city alley to be used to access a drive-through window for H&R Bakery saw pushback from neighboring businesses.

That pushback caused Salem officials to delay the second reading of an ordinance that would change the one-way direction of the alley from south to north – a change needed to facilitate access to the bakery’s drive-through window.

The matter was discussed during the Monday, July 8, meeting of the Salem Board of Public Works and Safety and the Common Council.

Representatives from Leader Publishing Company of Salem Inc., the owner of this newspaper, and Regions Bank questioned the change while Dwayne Daugherty, of H&R Bakery, countered by explaining how the drive-through would work.

Rhonda Smith, general manager of Leader Publishing, prefaced comments from representatives of that business by emphasizing that the publishing company supports local businesses and wants to be a good neighbor.

Nancy Grossman, publisher and part-owner of Leader Publishing, sent a letter to city officials prior to the meeting in which she explained how her business uses the alley, saying the proposed changes in the alley would have a negative impact on her business as well as other area businesses. She also questioned the legality of a city street or alley being used by a private business for a drive-through, noting that businesses typically maintain drive-through windows on their own privately-owned properties.

Daugherty said steps have been taken to expedite orders at the drive-through window to prevent long drive-through lines, including the development of an app that can be used to place orders and pay online. Customers placing orders at the window will only have a limited menu from which to pick and those with larger, more complex orders will be asked to come into the bakery. The window will be staffed with a dedicated barista and a camera will be installed with an alley view.

 

Read more in tonight's Salem Democrat!

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