Before passing the first votes to OK a Culver’s fast food restaurant on the former Steak ‘n Shake location in Maplewood, the city council, on June 9, discussed how best to handle the expected heavy traffic around the location.
The plan calls for removing one of two access points from Manchester Road and adding one on Oakland Avenue to reduce the possibility of cars backing up into Manchester.
Ward 1 council member C Wiley brought up how resident and school-related parking on Oakland Avenue might be affected by backup traffic.
Ward 3 council member Mark Vanden Akker’s concern was accommodations for pedestrians. Commenters on social media recently have pointed out that the plan needs to account for pedestrian safety considering the high school and middle middle school nearby, as well as the neighborhood to the south being within walking distance.
The final vote on the plan is set for the next city council meeting, July 14 at 7 p.m.
See also: P&Z OKs a Culver’s at former Steak ‘n Shake location