In-N-Out? Walnut Creek Neighbors Not Happy About Proposed North Main Street Location

Laura Milstead thinks it's fine that a new In-N-Out burger restaurant is opening up in central Contra Costa County along the Interstate 680 corridor. 

That is, she is OK with the one that is set to open this fall near the Target and Toys R Us stores on Contra Costa Boulevard in Pleasant Hill.

However, she's not thrilled about another proposed In-N-Out location along I-680 in Pleasant Hill. This 3,750-square-foot In-N-Out, with the requisite drive-through lane, is planned for a vacant parcel in the 3100 block of North Main Street, near the Black Angus restaurant. 

This In-N-Out site backs onto the residential neighborhood where Milstead has lived for 21 years. This proposed location, so close to people's homes on both sides of the Walnut Creek-Pleasant Hill border, has them raising a fuss. Some 50 of these residents have already expressed their displeasure with In-N-Out representatives at a recent meeting.

Now, comes a study session for the Pleasant Hill Planning Commission Tuesday evening. 

Milstead and neighbors believe that an In-N-Out at this particular North Main Street location will bring unwelcome traffic, noise, odor and even crime.

"We're excited about the first location but the second location will bring disaster to my neighborhood," Milstead said. 

In-N-Out is another burger chain whose expansion plans at this time are upsetting Walnut Creek residents.  

Over in the Woodlands neighborhood, off Oak Grove Road, residents have expressed wariness about a new McDonald's coming to their neighborhood.

Woodlands residents also worry about traffic and cite concerns about childhood obesity. Opponents of the North Main Street In-N-Out don't criticize In-N-Out's cuisine, which also includes burgers, fries, and thick creamy milkshakes.  

Yes, it is true that In-N-Out has its foodie followers, including such luminaries as the French Laundry's Thomas Keller. In-N-Out likes to boast that its food is made with fresh, non-processed, additive-free ingredients--that it is the more healthy, wholesome choice among fast-food burger chains. 

Residents contacted so far about the North Main Street location just don't think that an In-N-Out restaurant, with its drive-thru model, is appropriate so close to a residential neighborhood.

Milstead said the drive-through will open 30 feet from the home of a resident who has lived in the neighborhood for 60 years. She adds that the restaurant could bring hundreds of "unwanted cars using our streets as a short cut" as well as "crime, noise, lights, smells, garbage, traffic all hours of the day and the midnight drunks to our neighborhood."  

She notes that the restaurant would be in Pleasant Hill and the neighborhood is in Walnut Creek. "Pleasant Hill gets the revenue and Walnut Creek the problems," she said. 

Another resident, Sarah Nep, said she too is concerned about In-N-Out "attracting a late night rowdy crowd." She added:  "We enjoy entertaining in our backyard, and I worry about the noise, smell and exhaust will make it unpleasant.

Pleasant Hill released the draft environmental report on the restaurant last week. Now comes a 30-day review period which ends October 8. A public hearing is scheduled for October 12.

Tuesday's Planning Commission meeting, to review the In-N-Out proposal, takes place at 7:30 p.m. in the council chamber at City Hall, 100 Gregory Lane.