‘We’ll Honor Mearle’s Image’
Visalia - Although it won't be known as Mearle's, top executives of the Habit Burger Grill are promising to incorporate the image of the iconic Visalia eatery into plans for their new Mooney Boulevard restaurant.
After meeting last week with the City of Visalia's site plan review committee, Habit officials are now in the process of drafting plans to be submitted to the city for a special-use permit as well as a presentation before the city's Historic Preservation Committee.
Meeting stipulations imposed through the historic building designation is perhaps the stiffest hurdle Habit officials will face.
That designation was forged through the efforts of Friends of Mearle's and Visalia Heritage, Inc. in order to thwart demolition of the art deco style drive-in after the property was sold several years ago.
Habit's plans call for parts of the 70-year-old building to be incorporated into the new restaurant's design, which they say will feature a drive-though as well as photos and a scale model replica of Mearle's.
A large mural of Mearle's in its heyday will also be displayed inside the new burger restaurant.
Those factors, company officials say, are just part of a concerted effort to pay tribute to Visalia's renowned drive-in.
Both Habit executives and city officials have been reluctant to predict a time table for Visalia's Habit Burger Grill's completion and opening, but there have been indications that a fast-track route will be followed once plans are completed and the permitting processes cleared.
Russ Bendell, president and chief executive officer of Habit Burger Grill, has met with city officials and admitted the Visalia project is likely to take longer than other company projects to complete.
“While this is a longer development process than we would usually have for a location, I feel that due to the quality of the location, along with the unique factors of the former Mearle's, it is well worth the additional time and effort,” Bendell said.
Bendell has extensive experience in the food and restaurant business, including serving as top executive for Outback Steakhouse, the Cheese Cake Factory and Mimi's Café. He said using the Mearle's building fits into Habit's nostalgic image.
“We are not a cookie cutter” design company, he said. “We intend to preserve as much as possible the Mearle's image -- and its place in the Visalia community."
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