TCBY Coming to Bedford

The Bedford Planning Board, last night, approved a change-of-use site plan that allows TCBY (The Country's Best Yogurt), to open shop in Bedford.

The waiver permits the 2,019 sq. ft. space on the left side of the building at 5 Kilton Road (next to Supercuts) to be used as a fast food restaurant now, as opposed to its original intended use as a retail establishment.

The popular yogurt chain will now share a parking lot with Stop & Shop Gas and Supercuts.

But at least one local property owner isn't happy with the arrangement.

Dr. , who owns the adjacent property abutting both Stop & Shop and the building soon to house TCBY, spoke at the meeting, requesting that the waiver be denied, citing parking concerns for his building, which is just north of 5 Kilton Road, on the other side of the shopping center's entrance.

"Even now, there's a decent amount of spillage, in terms of shopping carts and Stop & Shop employees who park there, and I fear this will have an additional negative impact on us ... and could become a greater issue," said Lindner.

Because the requested waiver allows for a reduction in 22 spaces from what is typically required of a fast food establishment in Bedford, Lindner asked the board to maintain the building's intended retail use.

Still, not all board members were swayed by the plea. Though Christopher Riley expressed sympathy for the Lindner's plight, he suggested TCBY customers might be more likely to use the typically vacant spaces at the south end of the Stop & Shop parking lot, nearest the gas station.

Riley and other board members did, however, attempt to meet Lindner halfway, suggesting his lot be blocked off on the side in question or additional signage be added to dissuade the unintended use of his parking spaces.

Mark Lagasse, the TCBY applicant, agreed to pay for larger signage in Lindner's lot, though the latter said he wasn't convinced it would solve the problem, and the board unanimously approved the waiver.

The proposed hours of operation for TCBY, said Lagasse, will likely be between 11 a.m. and 10 p.m. in the summer, though the business will likely close earlier in the off-season. There are no current plans for outdoor seating.

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