Taco Bell to open in Millersburg
A full service Taco Bell restaurant is scheduled to open in Millersburg in January 2014.Village Administrator Nate Troyer said the plans for a 1,961 square foot facility was approved by the Millersburg planning and zoning commission with a small alteration. The restaurant will be built at 1532 South Washington Street, on the site of the former Masonic hall. A total of five lots were purchased for the restaurant site, for a total of $249,825, according to Holmes County Recorder records.
The restaurant is scheduled to open by the first of the year, Troyer said. The Masonic hall will be torn down to make room for the restaurant.
The restaurant will have two entrance/exit lanes and one entrance-only lane. The plans submitted by Taco Bell had three entrance/exit points, but the third was changed by the planning commission.
Troyer said the proposed entrance/exit lane on the south end of the site was changed to accept incoming south-bound traffic only because it is close to County Road 58/WalMart intersection. Allowing the lane to be both exit and entrance would be akin to adding another intersection, Troyer said, prompting the planning commission to make the change.
One entrance will be inside the WalMart drive, just to the west of the intersection. The other entrance is located on the northern side of the site, off South Washington Street.
Representatives of Taco Bell said they decided on a franchise location in town after changing how market studies are conducted in rural areas, according to Troyer.
"They split rural and urban, and that bumped us way up as far as having the market for it," Troyer said.
The new restaurant features a drive-thru with a holding capacity of eight vehicles. Plans show 25 parking spaces, plus additional parking for semis and buses.
Troyer said his talks with persons representing the new restaurant did not include specifics regarding jobs, operating hours or menu.
A smaller, limited menu franchise was previously housed inside the old Birdie's restaurant in Millersburg on West Jackson Street. The location is now a owner operated restaurant serving Mexican food not related to Taco Bell.
Taco Bell is a subsidiary of Yum! Brands and has more than 5,800 locations in the U.S. It was started in 1962 by Glen Bell, with the first restaurant opening in California.