News covering policy and issues related to city and county governments in the Ozarks.

City considers controversial coffee shop — again

Springfield Planning and Development Director Susan Istenes presented this neighborhood map to City Council on July 11, 2022 showing the proposed location for a controversial 7 Brew Coffee drive-through with three lanes across from Sunshine Elementary School.
City of Springfield

People living near the intersection of Sunshine and Jefferson in Springfield say they don’t want a coffee shop with three drive-through lanes on their corner.

The proposed drive-through coffee shop, 7 Brew Coffee, has already been rejected twice by the city Planning & Zoning Commission.

Nineteen people spoke on the matter at the July 11 City Council meeting in a two-hour discussion.

Developers recently tweaked their plan by adding some trees to the proposal. But neighbors still weren’t having it at Monday night’s council meeting.

"There’s already three 7 Brews within five miles of my property. Do we need another one?” one neighbor told council.

Some speakers supported the plan, including a lawyer appearing on behalf of developer Royce Reding and his team. They argued Springfield could use the jobs for 7 Brew workers, and they said Sunshine is a commercial street.

The new proposal comes up for a council vote on July 25.

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Gregory Holman is a KSMU reporter and editor focusing on public affairs.