Fri 25 Nov 2005
I have widely heard the story that Williamstown has a zoning law against chain restaurants, and Subway only got in because the person reviewing applications had never heard of it and thought it was a quaint little mom-and-pop sub sandwich shop. Have you heard that one, and is it true? (A zoning law story at my high school turned out to be false, so I’m wary of them.)
November 25th, 2005 at 7:20 pm
A zoning law that forbids a national chain/franchise would be easily challenged in court - it would be considered arbitrary and capricious to block a certain type of corporate structure from doing business in a town or part of a town.
Signs are another story, usually requiring a special permit. This sign seems pretty inoffensive even for those politically and aesthetically opposed to franchises. Still, any time a special permit is required the process is tilted against the petitioner.
November 26th, 2005 at 9:51 pm
My hometown has a zoning law against fast food chains. Blimpie and Subway are still legal in our scheme, since franchises are individually owned…