Braintree, MA, is concerned that a new expansion on a local shopping center will increase traffic. Read about it here.
Melvin Simon (shopping center owners) is asking to build a new Cheesecake Factory restaurant on about 68 spaces in front of the mall. The local planning commission is concerned that it will increase traffic at the mall.
It seems to me that the entire idea is to increase traffic to the mall. The Cheesecake Factory is a very popular restaurant and will, indeed, increase the number of people who come to the mall, thus increasing business and traffic for all the mall merchants. Is this a bad thing?
Companies like Melvin Simon are used to dealing with parking issues. They have a plan in place to move mall employees to outlying spaces and probably, during peak traffic times, off the property entirely.
Oh, according to estimates, the new store will add approximately 25 cars per hour to the mall. HUH. Plus the Cheesecake Factory is a high end restaurant – Most likely it will have valet parking.
As usual, planners have no clue. Read on in the article – you will see that even with the expansion, there will be more parking than required by the planners, who over required in the first place.
Lets, see — more jobs (a Cheesecake Factory probably employees about 50 people), more business for the mall, better facilities for the surrounding area — yep — lets vote against it.
JVH
