Oakdale Commons in JC Has Signed Contract with Chick-Fil-A

A partner in the company that owns the Oakdale Commons says "everything's going in the right direction" in the effort to develop a Chick-fil-A restaurant at the Johnson City site.

Marc Newman on Monday said Spark JC LLC now has a signed contract with the Georgia-based company.

Newman confirmed that it was Chick-fil-A that sought a variance for signage at the retail and business complex at Reynolds Road and Harry L. Drive.

The Johnson City zoning board of appeals approved the sign request last month. A digging permit for a Chick-fil-A restaurant construction project had previously been issued.

Newman said "we're excited about the potential" for the opening of the restaurant chain which has been preparing to enter the Binghamton market for years.

While there now is a signed contract with the company, he said there are "still some other boxes to be checked" before things could be finalized.

Newman noted the Oakdale Commons operators had previously hired a traffic engineer who has worked on other Chick-fil-A projects to assess what steps would be necessary to accommodate restaurant customers.

Johnson City government and police officials, along with the New York State Department of Transportation, have been involved in reviewing potential traffic issues.

Newman said he doesn't believe any additional traffic studies will be needed.

A Chick-fil-A spokesperson on Monday would not confirm a location for a future Johnson City restaurant.

The Key Bank branch in the southeast corner of the Oakdale Commons property occupies the area where a Chick-fil-A is expected to be built. The bank is expected to close its operations at that site by the end of the year.

Local and corporate Key Bank representatives won't discuss future plans. The Johnson City branch manager declined to comment when a reporter visited the office.

Sarah Doud also refused to talk about the branch when contacted by WNBF News. In an email, she wrote: "At this time, we are not able to share any specific information regarding KeyBank’s Oakdale Mall branch."

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Contact WNBF News reporter Bob Joseph: bob@wnbf.com or call (607) 545-2250. For breaking news and updates on developing stories, follow @BinghamtonNow on Twitter.