Council approves variances for Qdoba and Smoothie King at 33560 Aurora Road amid parking and noise concerns

The Solon City Council on Oct. 20 approved a package of variances and a site plan for 33560 Aurora Road that will allow a two-tenant building housing a Qdoba and a Smoothie King, including a drive-through lane, after a 4-3 roll-call vote.

The variances approved included a 63-foot front-yard building setback variance, a 16-foot front-yard parking setback variance, a 12-foot side-yard parking setback variance, a 20-foot rear-yard parking setback variance (approved 3-1 by the planning commission), reductions to the off-street loading requirements, reduced spacing between access drives, a 2-foot width of street access drive variance, cross-access drive variances, site buffer variances, and a parking variance that reduces the required 88 spaces to 25. The planning commission approved the site plan and variances contingent on compliance with a planning department memo dated Sept. 5, 2025; an engineering memo dated Sept. 5, 2025; a fire department memo dated Sept. 22, 2025; and an additional planning director memo submitted Oct. 16, 2025. The applicant agreed to consolidate the parcels as required.

Why it matters: The project repurposes a…