Plans For New Fast Food Restaurant Move Forward

Plans for a new McDonald’s fast-food restaurant in Bristol Township are moving forward. Conditional use and land development for the proposed eatery on the corner of Bath Road and Veterans Highway (Route 413) were approved last week by the township planning commission.

The project engineer, Anthony Caponigro, said the McDonald’s would be situated in what is now an empty parking lot owned by Rob’s Towing. The proposed site is in front of the  L.R.A. Motor Sports location. According to Caponigro, there will be a right only turn off Veterans Highway and another entrance not too far way, which is already existing on the property.

The brand new McDonald’s would be situated on the land between the Veterans Highway/Bath Road intersection and Ford Road. Attorney for the project Thomas Hecker said the new restaurant would replace the one just down at the street on Veterans Highway. The current McDonald’s was among the first in the area when it was built in 1958, only 5 years after the McDonald’s opened.

Project officials hope to start construction early next year after getting final approval from township council.

The new McDonald’s is planned as the company is in the middle of a billion dollar effort to redesign almost all of the chain’s 14,000 locations in the next few years. The new design is more customer friendly and extends the amount of products the fast food brand can sell.

Officials said the old building will likely be knocked down, but the decision was up to the property owner.

Hecker said the old McDonald’s on Veterans Highway holds a special place in his heart because he used to go on dates to the eatery with his wife after taking in a movie. “I won’t say how long ago that was,” he joked.