Chili’s hopes to bring heat to Wasilla diners

WASILLA — Winter is cold, but Chili’s is hoping to warm up Wasilla.

Wasilla City Planner Jim Holycross issued a stop-work order in September on the 5,876-square-foot Chili’s chain restaurant to be located along the Parks Highway next to the Grandview Inn and Suites hotel. The city’s planning commission will address the development plan for the restaurant at 7 p.m. at its regular meeting Tuesday.

“I know access is going to be a big issue,” Holycross said about the proposal to build a Chili’s. “I wanted to give [the state Department of Transportation] time to weigh in on the issue.”

With heavy traffic on the Parks Highway, Holycross said it is necessary to examine any potential traffic problems that could arise from vehicles having to cross traffic to access the business. The plan calls for Chili’s and the Grandview to share an access point off the Parks Highway. A shared driveway access permit issued by the state Department of Transportation says if problems arise, the state reserves the right to limit access from the highway.

The concern is drivers coming from Chili’s attempting to make a left turn across the eastbound lanes of the highway to get to the westbound lanes, Holycross said. While the Parks Highway access may have some limitations, additional access is provided by Broadview Avenue — a frontage road that runs off of the Old Matanuska Highway. Even if DOT restricts Parks Highway access in the future, Broadview Avenue could provide the access needed for the restaurant.

Along with allowing time for DOT address its access issues, Holycross passed Chili’s plan to the Wasilla Planning Commission for further review, which also provides a chance for the public to comment on the development.

“We hope there aren’t any more issues,” said John Dehaven, a Alaska Chili’s franchise partner. “We’ve tried to address everything to a satisfactory extent.”

Those involved with the development take pride in their work and look forward to creating quality restaurant in Wasilla, Dehaven said. With successful restaurants in Anchorage and Fairbanks, he’s excited about expanding to the Mat-Su Valley.

“I’m sure we will be successful out there as well,” he said. “We’ve been well-received in the state.”

While Chili’s will be the new restaurant on the block, Glacier Canyon Grill is next door at Grandview Inn and Suites. The Inn is owned by Emmi Properties, the same company that is building and leasing the Chili’s restaurant.

“We’re not expecting any decline at the Glacier Canyon Grill,” said Ernie Emmi, co-owner of Emmi Properties, about the potential for competition from Chili’s. “It should be good for both restaurants.”

Work on the restaurant may have been halted, but it wasn’t completely stalled, Holycross said. Steve Norton Enterprises, the general contractor, received a permit to build a retaining wall that is necessary for the site.

Dennis Bowen, project manager for the contractor, said construction is underway on the retaining wall. Although crews will have to work during the winter, they are ready to start making progress.

“They’ve been very cooperative,” Holycross said of the developer. “It’s going to be a nice addition to the community when it gets built.”

If all goes well, Dehaven said construction on the Wasilla Chili’s could be completed by spring 2008.

Contact Chris Gillow at 352-2284 or chris.gillow@frontiersman.com.