Maple Grove City Council Rejects Portillo’s Resturant

MAPLE GROVE, MN — We have some bad news to report, if you're a fan of hotdogs. Chicago-based Portillo’s plans to add a restaurant in Maple Grove have been rejected by the city council. In addition to loss of parking and motor vehicle congestion, local lawmakers rejected the plans primarily because they believed the restaurant would not bring enough pedestrians to the The Shoppes at Arbor Lakes.

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"I’m not entirely convinced bringing in a destination restaurant is going to deal with the vacancy issues we have at Arbor Lakes," Council Member Judy Hanson said before voting against the plans. "It’s far enough from the shops that it’s not going to cause me to walk the distance and do shopping."

Maple Grove Mayor Mark Steffenson, who supported the restaurant's bid to build a location in the city, was frustrated with the rejection.

"I don’t understand it, quite frankly," Steffenson said of the rejection. "We have gone out, we have tried to make this community a better, more attractive place for businesses to come, and this does not fulfill that desire," he added.

• Maple Grove Portillo's: Here's Who Voted For (And Against) It.

Watch the Maple Grove City Council meeting here.

Background

Portillo’s, a popular drive-in selling Italian beef sandwiches, Chicago-style hot dogs, hamburgers, and salads, is known for its old-school style of taking orders — which are written in pencil on a white paper bag.

“Because of the overwhelming response we recently received in opening our first restaurant in Wisconsin, Portillo’s has been actively looking at potential sites for new restaurants throughout the Midwest. These potential sites include the greater Twin Cities area,” Nick Scarpino of Portillo’s told WCCO.

Correction: A previous version of this article misstated information regarding the Woodbury location. The Portillo’s in Woodbury is currently under construction.

Image via Google Streetview