A group of Horatio Street residents are opposing a development application (DA) proposing a KFC restaurant along the street with one even receiving a threatening letter in their letterbox.
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The DA if approved, which has since gone off public exhibition, would see a residential address at 33-35 Horatio Street demolished to make way for a 40-seat KFC restaurant along the road coming west towards town.
In response to the application, a number of upset Horatio Street residents have posted a large signs opposite the location which read 'NO KFC ON HORATIO'.
One of those residents is Sarah Heij who has been renovating the home she bought for the past three years which is located almost directly opposite the proposed site. She said she was alerted to the existence of the DA by a neighbour and doesn't think the location is appropriate.
I looked through all the different... documents and things like that. It just automatically didn't make sense to me to put it on such a busy road that is already really congested. Over the last few years, it's gotten even busier," she said.
"When people [are] lining up on the street and waiting to actually getting to the KFC - it's going to be exactly the same here and then it's going to disrupt the flow of the traffic. ...it will just disrupt the flow and then it will cause chaos and frustration for - the residents that live on Horatio Street
"I just think it's the location. I just think it's really not appropriate or practical for many reasons, not only just the congestion, but... there's light pollution basically... we will be able to see it. We'll be able to see it from every window in our house."
Shiree Phillips's father has lived on Horatio Street since the for more than 70 years and she said the development would reduce his quality of life.
"There's so many issues there. It's a very, very heavily residential area as it is and the noise, the congestion, it's already a very busy road, and the light pollution from signage," she said.
"I think it would just culminate in something that will make his quality of life quite bad, actually, and for the residents around it too."
Shiree visited her father last week and found a threatening letter in his mailbox, which read: 'Stop your protesting or there will be trouble!!'. Shiree took the letter to police who, according to Shiree, did not make a report, the Mudgee Guardian clarified with local police that nothing is in their system regarding the letter.
"I'm all for businesses growing, evolving and moving but the location it has picked will cause more traffic in an already busy street, not only that the neighbourhood will smell of KFC," he said. "If it goes there fair enough but honestly there has to be a better location," said one Horatio Street resident who wanted to remain anonymous.
The Mudgee Guardian has reached out to the applicant Peter Consadine and his son James who runs Mudgee KFC but so far they have declined.
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