YORBA LINDA : Drive-Through Lane OKd for McDonald’s

The fast food served at a McDonald’s restaurant may be served even faster, thanks to a City Council decision to allow a drive-through lane there.

The council earlier this week upheld a Planning Commission decision to allow the drive-through lane at the McDonald’s at Yorba Linda Boulevard and Lakeview Avenue.

The decision clears the way for owner Bruce Weiss to install the lane after a 10-year effort to gain approval. “After all these years, persistence paid off,” he said. “I credit our customers who wrote letters and made phone calls” to the city.

The restaurant was built in 1975, when drive-through lanes were seen as a fad, Weiss said. But as they became more common, the owners noticed that sales at that restaurant were not as high as those at other McDonald’s with drive-through lanes.

Weiss first sought approval in 1983, encountering various obstacles over the next 10 years, including being turned down by the Planning Commission.

The most recent application was approved by the Planning Commission in August but was immediately appealed by Councilman Henry W. Wedaa.

Wedaa said the drive-through lane was unsafe and would cause traffic problems on Yorba Linda Boulevard.

The rest of the council voted to approve the project, swayed in part by the overwhelming support from residents and other tenants in the shopping center near the restaurant.

“When (McDonald’s) started this process, I thought, ‘No, no, no,’ ” Councilwoman Barbara Kiley said. “But I’ve had more people come to me” in support of it.

Councilman Mark Schwing agreed that there was strong support for the drive-though lane. “We seldom see a proposal like this gather so much support,” he said. “I don’t see how we can deny it.”

In his proposal, Weiss estimated that sales would increase about 8% with the addition of the drive-through lane and that more than half of his customers would choose to use the new lane.

Weiss said he expects construction on the drive-through lane will start early next year and take about six weeks.