- Village at the Mall Holdings LLC has requested approval to build a 990-square-foot Dutch Bros drive-thru coffee shop at 7606–7654 Mall Road.
- Plans were revised after public feedback, including updates to signage, traffic flow management and site details.
- The Zone Change Committee voted Feb. 18 to advance the proposal to the full Boone County Planning Commission for a March 4 decision.
Dutch Bros is the latest coffee franchise that could open a shop in Florence, pending a decision by the Boone County Planning Commission.
In early February, Frankfort-based Village at the Mall Holdings LLC requested a change to the concept development plan for a 10.7-acre lot at 7606-7654 Mall Road in Florence in order to build a 990-square-foot coffee house with a drive-thru. The organization has been represented at the planning commission meetings by the Cincinnati-based planning and consulting firm McBride Dale Clarion.
Similar to 7 Brew, which has rapidly expanded into Northern Kentucky over the past two years, Dutch Bros is a drive-thru-only chain with no indoor seating. Most Dutch Bros stores are small-format and prefabricated. If approved, the Florence location would be the first Dutch Bros in NKY, and the fourth in Greater Cincinnati.
The plans for Dutch Bros were first presented to the full planning commission during a public hearing on Feb. 4. Following that meeting, questions were raised about building materials, traffic flow, signage and site details.
Discussions resumed during a Zone Change committee meeting on Feb. 18, where the body addressed questions from the public hearing.
Boone County Planner Steve Lilly told the committee that Dutch Bros’ exterior will be ‘ash gray,’ which is permitted in the Mall Road Overlay District.
“I just wanted you to be aware, either way, both the gray tones and the brown tones are permitted within the Mall Road District,” Lilly said.
Jonathan Wocher, a planning and zoning consultant with McBride Dale Clarion, addressed the committee’s concerns regarding traffic flow. Mall Road is one of the busiest streets in Boone County due to the large number of vehicles that frequent nearby retailers.
Wocher presented a traffic control plan that includes temporary signage, multiple employees assigned to take orders in the drive-through queue, designated traffic coordinators, and the option to hire an off-duty police officer if needed. The plan also includes a bypass lane to help reduce vehicle stacking.
“There’s a drink runner,” Wocher said. “They will actually pick up the drinks and either deliver it to the queue or they’ll get it at the window, so if they are delivered to the queue, that gives them (customers) the chance to leave early and use the bypass. Then I think the important part is there’s going to be a traffic coordinator. That will be a Dutch Bros employee that’s brought in to manage that for the grand opening. “
Signage was another aspect of the original plan that was revised. The initial plan included 27 signs – some of which did not comply with district regulations. The updated proposal reduces the total number of signs to 16, eliminates prohibited snap-frame signage and relocates the drive-thru menu board.
After discussions concluded, the committee voted to advance the proposal for deliberation before the full planning commission at the upcoming March 4 meeting.