Chick-fil-A restaurant coming to Batavia

Chick-fil-A plans to build a restaurant in Batavia.

Mayor Jeff Schielke, who has mentioned the possibility previously, said the restaurant chain has sent in its application and paid the fees for plan review to the city.

The restaurant wants to build on the southwest corner of Randall Road and McKee Street, on land that was supposed to be a parking lot for a Fuddrucker’s restaurant.

The Fuddrucker’s never came to pass; the space it was to occupy in a strip mall has remained vacant nearly five years.

The company has restaurants in Orland Park, Aurora and Wheaton. It is opening one in Chicago next week.

Chick-fil-A serves chicken sandwiches and salads, except at breakfast, when it also offers pork-sausage burritos and sandwiches.

The chain was founded in, and is based out of, Georgia. Besides being known for its chicken sandwiches, the restaurants are also known for being closed on Sundays. The chief executive officer of the company, who founded it in 1946, believed that franchise operators and their employees should have an opportunity to rest, spend time with family and friends and attend worship services if they wanted to

It was also in the news in May when gay, transgender, bisexual and lesbian-rights activists protested the Chicago site. They contend the company supports anti-homosexual bigotry through its donations to organizations that advocate against homosexuality and gay marriage. The founder established a foundation that offers marriage counseling and enrichment seminars and retreats, and youth leadership training, based on his religious principles.