Springfield city council approves permit to allow 7-Brew location on E. Sunshine

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. (KY3) - In a 5-3, with one absent vote, the Springfield city council has approved the conditional use permit to allow a 7-Brew drive-thru coffee shop location on E. Sunshine.

The debate on the drive-thru location started several months ago. In the last council meeting in December, Susan Istenes, Director of Springfield Planning and Development gave a report stating that Springfield Public Works staff looked at options to try to mitigate potential traffic backups in the area. Their recommendation was to construct a median on Jefferson Avenue.

#sgfcouncil approves conditional use permit (to 5-3, with one absent) to allow a eating and drinking establishment with drive-thru to operate in the limited biz district in the 400 block of East Sunshine.
— City of Springfield (@CityofSgf) January 10, 2023

City leaders discussed the median would only allow right-in and right-out traffic on Jefferson Ave. into 7-Brew. There would also be an entry and exit option onto Roanoke Ave where drivers could go either left or right onto Sunshine leaving the coffee shop.

On Monday night, they discussed the median again and said if a median would be needed it would have to be paid for by the city, not the developer.

The developer, Royce Reding shared this statement with KY3 about the council’s approval of the 7-Brew.

“Under the leadership of Mayor McClure city council underscored tonight that Springfield is not closed to development. This project provides a better quality of place for our community along the sunshine corridor and I thank the council for their support.”

Nearby residents have concerns about added traffic and noise.

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