A Dairy Queen planned in Southeast Portland will include a drive-thru after all.

Last year, Portland Permitting & Development issued a letter to the owner of the lot at 5605 S.E. Division St., which formerly held a Dairy Queen. The city requested removal of a drive-thru from the owner’s plans to rebuild the fast-food restaurant.

The property owner fought back — and won.

Mohan Grewal, who represents the Beaverton-based ownership group, argued that the drive-thru is a legal nonconforming use at the property, which had a Dairy Queen drive-thru for more than five decades before it was demolished several years ago.

Permitting officials reconsidered their position and, on Dec. 29, 2025, issued a decision allowing inclusion of a drive-thru with the new restaurant.

The move comes as the city has tightened regulation of drive-thrus. City code generally prohibits the construction of new drive-thrus.

But existing drive-thrus are allowed in the mixed-use zoning, and city code provides that “existing facilities can be rebuilt, expanded or relocated on the site.”

The ex-Dairy Queen building was demolished sometime between summer 2019 and May 2020, and Akum Investment Group, a Beaverton limited liability company, sought to build a new Dairy Queen with a drive-thru on the lot.

The former restaurant was built in 1955; it’s not clear if the drive-thru was part of the original building. But it had been there for decades: The applicant submitted a newspaper article and signed declarations from a regional Dairy Queen executive and a family member of the former owners, all indicating that a drive-thru was operating there by 1968, when city code had no prohibitions on drive-thrus.

Portland zoning code began regulating drive-thrus in 1991, depending on the zone or plan district, according to Portland Permitting & Development.

“Over time, drive-throughs have been further limited in more plan districts and overlay zones with the intent of removing the influence of vehicles and emphasizing pedestrian access,” Portland Permitting & Development spokesman Ken Ray stated in an email.

Portland began prohibiting new drive-thrus in most commercial zones in 2018 as part of the city’s 2035 comprehensive plan.

Some residents, led by those in the Mount Tabor Neighborhood Association, argued that because the drive-thru had been absent from the site for more than three years, Akum no longer had a right to rebuild it.

After Akum protested with the help of Lake Oswego lawyer Wendie Kellington, PP&D changed tack. Permitting & Development staff determined last month that city code does not necessarily require drive-thrus to be continuously operated to maintain the right to have one on the site. (Kellington did not respond to messages seeking comment).

The controversy regarding the vehicular dispensation of hot eats and cool treats drew significant public interest. PP&D received a blizzard of public comments — more than 200 were submitted via email — generating a 694-page case file.

Lauren Howard, a nearby resident, wrote that the city should not allow a new drive-thru on the lot.

“I believe the newer standards are the right fit for this neighborhood and better for safety, traffic and overall livability,” she wrote.

Another resident, Tim Silva, wrote that “traffic is too heavy in that area, and the street is too narrow.”

He added, “We don’t need backups on a two-lane road that is a major bus route and full of other vehicles. And we don’t need all those idling cars putting extra exhaust fumes into our neighborhood.”

The site lies across Division Street from Franklin High School and Atkinson Elementary School.

Other neighbors stated that the drive-thru should be allowed. Alice and Michael Powell wrote that the ownership “does have the legal right to include a drive-thru. A new DQ will be an addition to the neighborhood and a continuation of a fine tradition of family walks and occasional drives to DQ.”

The Portland Bureau of Transportation raised no objections to the drive-thru.

The building permit is set to expire on April 12 if no inspection activity occurs by then.

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