Rochester denies developer’s plans for drive-thru restaurant on S. Goodman

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Plans to turn vacant lots into a quick-serve restaurant on South Goodman Street near Interstate 490 have been quashed by the City of Rochester Planning Commission.

Mark IV Enterprises intended to convert three parcels along South Goodman and Karges Place into an 1,800-square-foot restaurant with a parking lot and one-lane drive-thru.

But to do so, the developer needed the city to approve requests for two special permits, one for the drive-thru and a second for the 21-space parking lot.

The planning commission, by a 7-0 vote, denied the permits at the April 21 meeting, ruling that a car-centric use for the property would hamper walkability, create traffic issues and interfere with the ambiance of neighboring residential properties.

An explanation of the decision was sent to the developer on Tuesday.

The planning commission determined that a restaurant itself would not be an issue, but that a drive-thru would have “substantial or undue adverse effect upon adjacent residential properties, other businesses, traffic conditions, vehicular and pedestrian safety, and the neighbors and visitors who shop, dine and live in the area.”

The ruling noted that any queuing and/or stacking in the drive-thru would impact pedestrian, bicycle and vehicular traffic, especially since the ramp to I-490 is approximately 200 feet to the north and the South Goodman and South Clinton Avenue intersection is 300 feet to the south.

The commission also cited the city’s 2034 Comprehensive Plan, which prioritizes “development and design that is pedestrian scaled and generates street-level activity in order to promote walkability and healthy lifestyles, and to create an attractive and welcoming built environment.”

As such, the commission determined that including a drive-thru and large parking lot “at this small site on a heavily trafficked and densely built corridor runs counter to those purposes.”

Mark IV was already advertising the proposed restaurant development for lease starting in 2026. The Rochester-based developer built and operates the neighboring upscale apartments at 625 S. Goodman, which opened in 2020.

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