What’s the holdup on the Raising Cane’s Chicken Fingers in Beavercreek?

It’s been months since plans for a new Raising Cane’s Chicken Fingers restaurant were submitted to the city of Beavercreek.

The early buzz was nothing but positive. City council approved the preliminary plans. In February, a spokeswoman for the restaurant’s franchise owners suggested the Beavercreek location could open as early as May. But as of mid-August, the restaurant had yet to break ground.

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The franchise owner of Raising Cane’s Ohio restaurants — RCO Limited, which opened its first Dayton-area location in June on Ohio 725 in Washington Twp. — declined to answer questions about the project. But Beavercreek officials say they believe the restaurant will be built.

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Here’s what has happened so far:

Raising Cane’s submitted plans to the city of Beavercreek in November 2016 that called for a 3,576-square-foot restaurant to be built on a vacant tract adjacent to a Speedway on Kemp Road just east of North Fairfield Road.

Those preliminary plans were approved by Beavercreek City Council. At the time, Beavercreek Planning Director Jeffrey M. McGrath cautioned that, “Nothing will be finalized until the lot is created for the restaurant and permits have been issued.”

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The project has slowed to a crawl primarily because the design of an access street to the restaurant is still being worked out by the owners of the property, McGrath said. The proposed street will have access points at both Kemp Road and North Fairfield Road, according to Beavercreek city records.

The delay has sabotaged the original timetable, but there’s no evidence that Raising Cane’s has given up.

“Every indication at this point is that they intend to move forward” with the project, McGrath said, after the details of the access road are resolved.

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RCO Limited spokeswoman Andria Morgan told this news organization earlier this week, “”Unfortunately, at this time, we have no comment regarding that property.”

Morgan said diners have warmly welcomed the first Dayton-area Raising Cane’s, which opened June 28 at 1136 Miamisburg-Centerville Road.

“Raising Cane’s has been received well by Dayton and the surrounding communities,” Morgan said. “We look forward to partnering with the many schools and organization in early 2018 after we settle in.”

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Baton Rouge, Louisiana-based Raising Cane’s Chicken Fingers operates multiple restaurants in the Columbus and Cincinnati areas, and opened a restaurant in Fairfield in October 2016.

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Morgan has said RCO Limited has found a very loyal customer base as it has opened stores in southern Ohio. In 2004, the franchisee opened the first Raising Cane’s outside of Louisiana in Columbus, Ohio.

The chain prides itself on a limited menu and a simple concept, focused on chicken fingers, made “fresh, never frozen,” marinated for 24 hours, then hand-battered and cooked to order. Also featured on the menu are crinkle-cut fries, cole slaw, Texas Toast and sauces that are made in-house every day.

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