Parking decision on hold for Devine Street eatery

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The Board of Zoning Appeals deferred a request for a variance to the parking requirements for a proposed restaurant at 3006 Devine St. at its Tuesday meeting.

Zoning board members were told the applicant, Frank Dougherty, development coordinator at Cason Development Group, wanted more time to discuss the case before making his presentation.

Family-owned Backstreets Grill is hoping to open its second location at the property, the site of a former office building near Urban Cookhouse. Developer Frank Cason said it is the first expansion for the Hickory, N.C. eatery.

A city zoning ordinance requires eight parking places per 1,000 square-feet, totaling 36 parking spaces. The site currently features 18, which Dougherty argues is enough.

In the application, Dougherty wrote the property is in a dense area with limited parking. The application also notes the parking requirements do not generally apply to other properties in the vicinity.

Cason said there is access to nearby street parking, and an agreement worked out with a lot near the site would provide additional parking.

The developers plan to renovate the 4,500-square-foot building on a 13,998-square-foot lot to fit the needs of the proposed restaurant.

“It’s a family-style restaurant that is excited about the possibilities in the Shandon area,” Cason said.

The restaurant, which opened in in 1996, features wraps, salads, sandwiches and burgers and the motto “Great Food. Good Friends. Bad Parking.”