By Meg Peters
Review Co-editor
There is only one Class C Liquor License available in Orion Township, and two businesses battled for it Tuesday night after The Review went to press.
Both City Smoke Lake Orion LLC, otherwise known as Bad Brad’s BBQ, and Chipotle Mexican Grill made their cases to Orion Trustees at the board meeting, and it was up to trustees to decide which business would offer the largest economic impact to the community.
The future businesses both will sit along the Baldwin corridor, with Bad Brad’s BBQ at 3437 Baldwin Rd. on the northeast corner of Baldwin and Maybee. Chipotle will be at 4921 Baldwin.
Both businesses are new builds, promising new jobs and some form of outdoor patio, but only one would offer a full bar.
‘It’s hard because we don’t typically like to pick winners and losers, but in this case we do,? Supervisor Chris Barnett said. ‘Who’s going to create more jobs, is one of them going to be more of a destination than the other one. My opinion is it’s an economic development tool and to me that’s what it should be used for.?
Like many of the Chipotle chain restaurants across the U.S., the Mexican-themed establishment would offer bottled beer, wine, and hand-mixed margaritas that customers could order and pick up in line while getting their food.
Bad Brad’s BBQ would offer a full service bar available to 135 patrons dining inside the building, and 60 people utilizing outdoor seating.
Bad Brad’s site plan calls for a 6,000 square foot building, whereas Denver-based Chipotle’s building plan shows a 2,300 square foot building.
The building site for Bad Brad’s BBQ is owned by local entrepreneur Larry Mullins, owner of Environmental Wood Solutions off Giddings Rd., and developer of the CVS adjacent to the site.
Mullins was originally promised one class c liquor license in 2010. After the state determined Orion Township was a growing community, as reported by the 2010 census, the township was granted two additional liquor licenses.
One went to a local business at the time, Pizzarific, which has since closed, and the other was put in escrow for a restaurant that was going to be built at Mullins? property at the northeast corner of Maybee and Baldwin.
‘The board passed a resolution that he would have to start construction last year, and be occupied and have a liquor license on site by this July. He didn’t get it done, so it [the liquor license] went back on the market,? Barnett said.
About 140 new jobs are expected to come to Bad Brad’s, Barnett said, which will be about a $1.2 million building investment to the community.
Chipotle had not included statistics on job growth by the time The Review went to press.
See next week’s Review for the answer on who will be the next class c liquor license holder in Orion Township.