After opening its first location in Worcester in 2017, Chick-fil-A is eyeing a second location in the city, this time at the site of a former Walgreens pharmacy at 99 Stafford St.
The Georgia-based chicken chain made its intentions to open a second Worcester location public as part of an application for a special permit in front of the Worcester Zoning Board of Appeals on Oct. 28. The company pitched a 5,331-square-foot restaurant featuring indoor and outdoor seating, two drive-through lanes, and 77 parking spaces.
The Zoning Board of Appeals moved 5-0 to extend the discussion to the board’s Nov. 25 meeting, requesting more details from the applicant on the location’s parking plan and a chance for the City’s Department of Transportation & Mobility to weigh in on potential traffic and pedestrian impacts.
Speaking to the relatively large amount of parking spaces at the site for a fast food location, Joshua Lee Smith, a lawyer from Worcester firm Bowditch & Dewey who is representing Chick-fil-A, said the restaurant would need ample parking, noting the lot at the restaurant’s Gold Star Boulevard location is often near capacity.
“It took a lot of money to make those improvements,” Smith said, referring to expansions of the parking area at the Gold Star Boulevard location, “[Chick-fil-A] didn’t do that just for the fun of it. They did it because they needed it.”
The site was once home to the Stone & Berg Lumber store before the building was demolished in 2007, according to an article from the Worcester Telegram & Gazette. It later became the home of a Walgreens location until late 2023, when the location closed as part of a wider national consolidation of Walgreens stores.
Chick-fil-A opened its first standalone Massachusetts location in Chicopee in 2014, after previously entering the state via locations at mall food courts, according to the Lowell Sun. In addition to its Worcester restaurant, existing Chick-fil-A in Central Massachusetts are located in Marlborough, Framingham, and Westborough.
Eric Casey is a staff writer at Worcester Business Journal, who primarily covers the manufacturing and real estate industries.
