In exchange for permission to build a restaurant along old Centreville Road and Route 28 in Centreville, Burger King franchise owner Ron Devine promised Fairfax County a quarter of a million dollars worth of road improvements.
It took longer than expected, but the work is now finally done. And the county has given Burger King the permit it needed to continue operating.
In October, county Zoning Administrator Jane Guinn issued a notice of violation stating that the restaurant opened for business without first obtaining its required nonresidential use permit. But it couldn't get the permit until the road improvements were made.
The county based its actions on a zoning inspection conducted Oct. 9, and Guinn's letter said Burger King could comply with the law by "ceasing the operation of the use until such time as the required ... permit has been issued." Naturally, Burger King — a new business building its customer base here — wanted to remain open.
So it filed a formal appeal, Nov. 15, stating that "the completion of road improvements [was] delayed through no fault of [Burger King's], and to preclude operation of the fast-food restaurant will result in undue hardship."
Work proceded during the appeal, and now all is well. The owner of the two-story, 8,100-square-foot Burger King has finished all the road improvements, which included:
* Building a sidewalk between Little Rocky Run and its side entrance and striping a crosswalk across Old Centreville Road;
* Building a left-turn lane onto Route 28 from Old Centreville Road extended so there would be five lanes between Burger King and the residential development on the other side of Old Centreville Road, across from the restaurant;
* Going north on Old Centreville Road, building a right-turn lane into the residential area (Centex Homes) and, coming south on Old Centreville Road, making a right turn into the restaurant; and
* Coming off Route 28, creating a separate, left-turn lane to enter the Burger King and making a right-turn lane to get into the nearby townhouses.
At the time of the appeal, Lynne Strobel — the attorney representing that Burger King franchise — also requested a public hearing before the Board of Zoning Appeals (BZA). But when the matter got there Tuesday morning, April 2, the issue had already been resolved.
On March 21, county staff acknowledged that Burger King had complied with everything asked of it and issued its nonresidential use permit. Burger King then withdrew its appeal and, on Tuesday, the BZA unanimously accepted it by a vote of 7-0. Fries, anyone?