Freddy's Frozen Custard & Steakburgers planning Naperville location

Freddy's Frozen Custard & Steakburgers is aiming to expand into Naperville.

The fast-food franchise is targeting High Grove Plaza on the east side of Route 59 just north of Glaciar Park Avenue.

While an estimated opening date wasn't provided, representatives on Wednesday cleared a key hurdle with a unanimous recommendation from the city's planning and zoning commission for a parking variance.

The 3,230-square-foot restaurant would offer a variety of menu items, highlighted by steak burgers, fries and sauces, hot dogs and frozen custard. A drive-through is included in the plans for the outlot space that's currently part of the shopping center parking lot.

“I know that Freddy's is excited to locate here and enhance this property,” John Zemenak, an attorney representing Freddy's, told the planning and zoning commission.

The one hang-up for the new location was the parking variance.

According to city officials, that portion of the shopping center, which includes a vacant lot and Urban Air Adventure Park, requires 409 parking spaces. With the addition of Freddy's, there would be a deficit of 36 spaces.

Luay Aboona, from the traffic study group of Kenig, Lindgren, O'Hara and Aboona, told the commission there still would be plenty of available parking with Freddy's added. According to the group's analysis, the peak demand for parking in that area of High Grove Plaza would be for 261 spaces.

“When we looked at the parking distribution of Freddy's on top of what currently exists at the shopping center, it shows that there will continue to be more than adequate parking available,” Aboona said.

Founded in 2002 by brothers Bill and Randy Simon, the restaurant is named in honor of their father, who served in the Pacific during World War II.

The first location opened in Wichita, Kansas, and there now are more than 400 Freddy's franchises across the country.

Similar to other Freddy's locations, the structure would have a brick facade with red and white awnings.

“We feel that the building is really very congenial with the existing parking lot and will fit in there very nicely,” project engineer Bill Perry told the commission.