February 22, 2025
The McDonald’s restaurant at 473 East Main Street in Lexington, Oct. 21, 1997. The restaurant was built more than 33 years ago under heavy protest because McDonald’s wanted a drive-through. Neighbors in historical Bell Court and the owners of Kerr Brothers Funeral Home, next door to McDonald’s, vigorously opposed a drive-through. The restaurant took its case to the Kentucky Supreme Court, which declined to review the case in 1985. The restaurant chain tried again in 1987 and in 1997 for a drive-through. McDonald’s eventually moved to Winchester Road. Cielito Lindo, a Mexican restaurant took over the building, but it closed in 2011 and the building was demolished. Recently a coffee shop with a drive-through — possibly Starbucks — was proposed for the site. Photo by Charles Bertram | Staff