Can't we make companies accountable for abandonment? (Tucker, Moreland: insurance, loan)

[ATLTJL]

I was pretty shocked last night to drive by the Pollo Tropical on State Bridge Road and see it shuttered. Apparently, the restaurant closed a couple locations in the metro area.

It was only opened less than two years ago!!!! And it was built from the ground up. What is Johns Creek going to do with an abandoned Pollo Tropical?

It just made me wonder....the actual company isn't out of business. Can't the city do anything? Is it possible to make a stipulation before granting any building permit that if the company closes the location, they must tear it down and return the land to its previous state? Obviously if a company goes belly-up it's not enforceable, but Pollo Tropical still exists. Can't we make them clean up their mess?

[convextech]

How would you feel if you built a home and suddenly had to go bankrupt, and then the city tried to make you take your home back down?

[Back to NE]

Good point, America is littered with shuttered businesses. I bet all they have to do is board up the property and abandonment is legal. Meanwhile, especially if they developed the land in the first place, they have gotten away with destroying a small chunk of nature. And these buildings, especially if given time can become very toxic and should not be visited (by curious teenagers for instance).

[ATLTJL]

How would you feel if you built a home and suddenly had to go bankrupt, and then the city tried to make you take your home back down?

The company DIDN'T go bankrupt...it just decided to close a few locations.

And it's apples and oranges. Homes can be easily sold to new residents. Businesses like Pollo Tropical contain notable branding architectural features that make them very difficult to sell to other businesses that have their own branding.

I've noticed that every time QT abandons a gas station to build a new one, they tear down the old one. That's good citizenship.

[Iconographer]

Perhaps I could respond if I knew the facts surrounding this situation.
If the store was a money loser, what sense did it make to keep it open?
And as long as they keep the building up to code, what's the problem?

[MattCW]

I wouldn't mind having some kind of mandatory cleanup insurance or bond that businesses are required to post prior to opening a new location. Not sure exactly how it would work though. Maybe they get it back if they sell to a new owner who then has to post a bond? Or they get it back if like QT they raze the structure. But they don't get it back if they abandon the building. I can't see it being applied to any existing structures, but I could see something like that for any new construction moving forward.

[gold15]

Originally Posted by ATLTJL

I've noticed that every time QT abandons a gas station to build a new one, they tear down the old one. That's good citizenship.

There is a new larger one with a 'QT Kitchens' that replaced one diagonally across the intersection from it at Columbia Drive and Flat Shoals Parkway in DeKalb. The old one is still there, neatly boarded up, on a clean lot. (Someone is apparently maintaining the lot so that it doesn't become a dump or overrun with weeds, etc.)

QT's reps told one of the S. Dekalb local papers that they would ensure the new tenant was a good 'fit' for the area and neighbors. The old one has been empty of about a year now.

They don't tear them all down.

[Zanarkand A East]

Originally Posted by ATLTJL

I was pretty shocked last night to drive by the Pollo Tropical on State Bridge Road and see it shuttered. Apparently, the restaurant closed a couple locations in the metro area.

It was only opened less than two years ago!!!! And it was built from the ground up. What is Johns Creek going to do with an abandoned Pollo Tropical?

It just made me wonder....the actual company isn't out of business. Can't the city do anything? Is it possible to make a stipulation before granting any building permit that if the company closes the location, they must tear it down and return the land to its previous state? Obviously if a company goes belly-up it's not enforceable, but Pollo Tropical still exists. Can't we make them clean up their mess?

We're dying to get our first Pollo Tropical on the southeast side (Tucker is still to far away). They can feel free to put on on Moreland, and I've already asked them. Here's hoping!

[Zanarkand A East]

Originally Posted by gold15

There is a new larger one with a 'QT Kitchens' that replaced one diagonally across the intersection from it at Columbia Drive and Flat Shoals Parkway in DeKalb. The old one is still there, neatly boarded up, on a clean lot. (Someone is apparently maintaining the lot so that it doesn't become a dump or overrun with weeds, etc.)

QT's reps told one of the S. Dekalb local papers that they would ensure the new tenant was a good 'fit' for the area and neighbors. The old one has been empty of about a year now.

They don't tear them all down.

I was about to say this. Still not sure why they moved across the street, as there seemed to be enough room to expand where they were. A few people nearby were excited to see the land being cleared, but were furious to find out it was another damn gas station.

[Zanarkand A East]

Originally Posted by ATLTJL

The company DIDN'T go bankrupt...it just decided to close a few locations.

And it's apples and oranges. Homes can be easily sold to new residents. Businesses like Pollo Tropical contain notable branding architectural features that make them very difficult to sell to other businesses that have their own branding.

I've noticed that every time QT abandons a gas station to build a new one, they tear down the old one. That's good citizenship.

The issue is when they become loan centers or makeshift restaurants.