After a protracted attempt to rezone land for a Zaxby’s restaurant with double-drive-thru lanes was denied by the Dunwoody City Council in a close 2025 vote, another attempt is afoot, this time from a medical practice with a request for a drive-thru service.
SmartMED,LLC is holding a community meeting on June 30 at 6:30 p.m. at the site of the former PNC Bank site at Ashford Lane, according to a published announcement, “to discuss the scope of services/project.”
“SmartMED,LLC is seeking a Special Use Land Permit from the City of Dunwoody for a medical practice with a drive-thru care component,” the announcement said.
According to its website, SmartMED advertises itself as a location where patients can “drive up, see a provider, get treated, and keep moving.”
“With SmartMED, you get fast, professional treatment without stepping out of your car,” the website said. “Our team handles everything from exams and testing to prescriptions, all designed to get you back on your way quickly.”
Typical maladies treated by SmartMED include strep throat, asthma, pink eye, wound care and urinary tract infections, it said.
It has a location in Roswell on Holcomb Bridge Road and one in Alpharetta on Flynn Crossing Drive. The hours of operation are Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Long history at former PNC Bank location
A months-long chicken drive-thru rezoning attempt at the same location was put to “roost” in mid-December last year when the Dunwoody City Council denied a SLUP for an 18-car double-drive-thru at a proposed Zaxby’s restaurant at the Ashford Lane complex.
The council voted 4-3, with Rob Price, Joe Seconder, Stacey Harris, and Mayor Lynn Deutsch denying the application. Tom Lambert, Catherine Lautenbacher, and John Heneghan voted to approve the application.
The restaurant itself is an approved use, but the construction of a drive-through lanes had to be approved with a SLUP.
A modified plan for the site submitted by the developers before the request was rejected, reflected a smaller building footprint – from its original 4,359 square feet to 3,486 square feet.
But concerns about the already congested Ashford Lane parking lot and the issues surrounding an 18-car “stack” at the drive-thru lanes deterred the council from approving the SLUP.
Another chicken application flies the coop
Chicken-themed restaurants have had a rough run of late in the Dunwoody area. Last December, the council refused to grant a SLUP that would allow drive-thru service at a proposed fast-food restaurant on Ashford Dunwoody Road.
Raising Cane’s was petitioning for the SLUP in order to construct a 2,900 square-foot restaurant with double-drive-through service lanes on a 1.56-acre site at 4570 Ashford Dunwoody Road. The site formerly housed a bank and has been vacant for about two years.
The council had already approved a zoning change from O-I (Office-Industrial) to PC-1 to allow for a restaurant as an accepted use.
A staff memo summarizing the SLUP request said that it recommended the drive-through application be denied for a variety of reasons, including concerns about the proximity of its curb cut to a nearby McDonald’s, the impact on the egress and ingress at a nearby hotel, and the amount of traffic it would attract on an already-crowded corridor. The Dunwoody Planning Commission had voted at its September 2025 meeting to recommend denial of the application.
Rough Draft has contacted a SmartMED representative for comment about the meeting. According to city officials, no application has yet been filed for the SLUP.
