An IHOP restaurant, a Sonic Drive-In, a new drive-thru coffee shop and a new bakery are in various stages of development within a few block radius of a busy Oak Harbor intersection, according to city officials.
The projects will bring more food and drink options for residents, as well as potentially dozens of new jobs in the service industry.
Construction crews have been working for months at a long-vacant, 2.39-acre lot at Highway 20 and Pioneer Way to build a Sonic Drive-In, a fast food chain known for burgers and slushes, as well as a Glint Car Wash. The lot was formerly the site of a longtime Ford dealership and a planned McDonalds restaurant, which fell through.
In addition, the owner of Cedar & Salt Espresso applied for a conditional use permit to build a coffee shop with both a drive-thru and a walk-up window adjacent to the same property. The coffee shop will be the fourth site opened by Whidbey resident Angie Lambert-Jackson, who also owns the popular Cedar & Salt in Coupeville.
The 400-square-foot coffee shop will also have seating under a gazebo and a “garden-like” landscaped area, Lambert-Jackson said. The shop will offer some baked goods besides coffee drinks. She hopes to open in late spring or early summer if everything goes as planned.
The developer, Terraforma Design Group and Serj Real Estate Holdings, is the same firm working on the Sonic and car wash facilities, according to the city. The coffee shop proposal is currently under review by the staff and will require a conditional use permit because of the drive-thru. The full site plan will have to go to the hearing examiner for a decision.
Just west on Highway 20, construction crews are busy turning the empty building adjacent to the Wing Stop into an IHOP. The restaurant, which is an acronym for International House of Pancakes, is a pancake house restaurant chain that specializes in American breakfast foods.
The building is about 3,000 square feet, which is about the average size of an IHOP. The company reports that the franchise restaurants come in different formats and can range from 1,600 to 4,800 square feet.
Just north on Highway 20, a local woman is planning on building the Whidbey Island Bake Shop in the same building as Oak Harbor Pediatric Dentistry. The city administrator’s report at the Nov. 29 workshop states that the proposal is for a bakery and cafe with dine-in seating. The city is awaiting an application for a conditional use permit.
