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Tyrone menu: Sonic Drive-In, Waffle House

By JOHN THOMPSON
jthompson@TheCitizenNews.com

Do you want your hashbrowns scattered, smothered and covered?

Would you like a cherry limeade to complete your order?

Those are the questions that Tyrone residents may soon be answering after Thursday night’s Town Council meeting.

For the past two months, residents and town officials have been arguing the merits of allowing Waffle House and Sonic Drive-In to locate in the growing northern Fayette town.

Some residents have hailed it as a sign of Tyrone moving into the big leagues, while others have dismissed the restaurants and called for the town leaders to do more to encourage “white napkin” restaurants to open in the town.

Town manager Barry Amos has watched the process move from the Planning Commission to the Town Council and expects a big crowd at Thursday night’s session.

For nearly a month, it was thought the issue of Waffle House opening in town was a dead issue. But in January, representatives of the 24-hour eatery approached Amos and asked to be put back on the agenda.

Waffle House officials had withdrawn their request after saying they could not live with the town’s signage requirements.

Waffle House had previously agreed to make the restaurant more visually appealing after Amos discovered an unusual Waffle House.

“I was exploring on the ‘Net and found a different design,” Amos said.

The town manager said the Waffle House design he favored is in Ft. Collins, Colo., and features a number of unique architectural elements that made it stand out from the traditional black and yellow box.

During the initial hearings on the issue, Councilman Paul Letourneau summed up the Town Council’s feelings: “Tyrone is a unique place, and we’d like to have a unique Waffle House,” he said.

Amos explained the property was part of the parcel that was zoned as a PUD in 1997. The town fought the zoning and lost the legal battle, so the town has very little control over what goes on the property. The Waffle House would be located across the street from the Publix shopping center on Ga. Highway 74.

Sonic is also located on the PUD parcel.

Residents may want to eat dinner before they attend the meeting, since a lengthy, perhaps mouth-watering, discussion is predicted.