The North Huntingdon commissioners next week will debate the merits of site plans for a Sonic drive-in restaurant and Walgreens Pharmacy West proposed for Route 30.

The township planning commission Monday night granted conditional approval of White Oak-based NCH Hospitality's site plan for a Sonic at the intersection of Route 30 and Billot Avenue.

Planners also conditionally approved the latest of several revised site plans for the Walgreens. It would anchor a two-structure commercial complex that Pittsburgh-based Walnut Capital Investors proposes to develop on the site of the former Chesterfield's restaurant.

The board also approved a revised subdivision of the Chesterfield's site to create a larger parcel in the area slated for a Starbucks Coffee, which was proposed in the original complex design approved by township officials in 2007.

Starbucks backed out of the deal last summer.

Property at the rear of the Walgreens pad, which Walnut Capital purchased from the township last year for storm water management at the complex, has been transferred to create an adjacent 3.9-acre parcel. The Walgreens pad is downsized to 1.5 acres. The total area of the new parcels is 5.5 acres.

Walnut Capital applied for the revised subdivision to create a larger parcel to enhance its efforts to attract another investor to locate in the complex, which would access Route 30 at the Lincoln Way intersection.

No potential investor has been identified.

A Walgreens East, expected to be developed by W.D. Investors/Tara Group on a site near the Norwin Avenue-Route 30 entrance to the Norwin Hills Shopping Center, is not associated with the Walnut Capital project.

NCH Hospitality proposes to construct a 1,536-square-foot Sonic with no indoor food service area on the site of the former Collins Family Motorsports. Food would be ordered via outside menu boards and brought to parked vehicles by carhops.

The plan calls for a right-turn out access ramp along Route 30 near the existing Palerino's car wash, and another along Billot Avenue, which leads to the rear entrance to the Norwin High School campus.

Planners, Norwin School District administrators, township police and Pennsylvania Department of Transportation officials are especially concerned about traffic turning left from Billot onto Route 30. It would be a tough turn and result in stacking along Billot, where the First Student school bus garage is located.

No traffic signal is planned at the Route 30-Billot intersection, which is at the base of heavily traveled Jacktown Hill.

Planners and Hartley King, founder of King's Family Restaurants and a principal in NCH, favor a no-left turn sign being erected on Billot Avenue to force traffic to turn right onto Route 30.

Norwin Superintendent Jack Boylan said school buses are not permitted to turn left onto Route 30 from Billot.

Another potential problem is the increasing number of motorists using Billot as a shortcut through the high school campus to Route 30.

"I can say Norwin administrators are not [eager to have] the campus becoming a thruway to the proposed Sonic and Route 30," said Andy Blenko, township planning director/engineer, who met with Dr. Boylan.

Another potential hurdle is whether old fuel storage tanks are still buried in the proposed Sonic site, which once housed a service station. Tanks would have to be removed and the soil tested for toxicity before the township could grant a building permit, Mr. Blenko advised.

Planners are recommending approval of the Sonic and new Walgreens plans, pending satisfaction of several attached conditions and the subdivision this month.

The commissioners will review the board's recommendations at a workshop meeting next Thursday night. Consideration for final approval of the two plans and subdivision could come at the regular meeting Feb. 18.