They couldn’t save Fry Street from the bulldozer, but opponents of a new retail development there aren’t giving up.

Critics of the proposed Fry Street Village have lined Oak Street with yard signs, hoping to sway public opinion as plans for the development face their first legislative test tonight.

The Denton Planning and Zoning Commission will consider three variances to city code that would accommodate parts of the nearly 4-acre development, located just off the University of North Texas campus.

Opponents have zeroed in on a proposed pharmacy drive-through lane, saying it would endanger pedestrians in a heavily walked area. Planning commissioners won’t consider the drive-through itself tonight but will vote on spacing requirements for the lane’s proposed entrance from Hickory Street.

“I think everybody feels that [drive-through] is not appropriate for a pedestrian-friendly area,” said former City Council member Mike Cochran, a leading opponent of the project. “You’ve got so many people on foot there, and what they’re proposing — a drive-through — is absolutely the opposite” of pedestrian friendly.

Tim Sandifer, project manager for Houston-based developer United Equities Inc., said the criticism is off base. The project is designed to accommodate pedestrians by incorporating wide sidewalks and centrally located parking, he said.

“The way we designed it, we think, is the best way to keep the project pedestrian friendly and fit in with the architecture and style of the neighborhood and keep the parking lot internal,” Sandifer said. “We’re trying to keep the automobile traffic confined.”

Last year, United Equities bought most of the block bordered by Fry, Oak, Welch and Hickory streets and announced plans to redevelop it. The news spurred protests from residents who wanted to save existing businesses and buildings, some dating to the 1920s.

The developer demolished many of the buildings this summer but has pledged to replace them with structures that incorporate some of the same architectural elements.

Anchoring the development would be a CVS Pharmacy at the corner of Fry and Hickory streets, where The Tomato restaurant stood. But Sandifer said a lease won’t be final until the city grants the required permits.

The entire development hinges on having CVS as anchor, Sandifer said, so the city’s approval of a drive-through is critical.

United Equities is asking for a variance to put the drive-through entrance on Hickory Street less than 10 feet from the existing Cool Beans driveway. City code calls for at least 200 feet between driveways on arterial streets, so city planners are recommending denial of the request.

“Because there is a lot of pedestrian traffic, we think that would be extremely dangerous,” said Peggy Capps, a resident of the Oak-Hickory Historic District, which borders the development site. “We think that it would be a very serious safety issue, and we oppose it on several different levels, especially the fact that it violates the city’s own regulations.”

Capps hosted about two dozen critics of the project at her home last week. The group is responsible for the “NO CVS DRIVE-THRU” yard signs that began popping up in the area Friday.

If the variance for the drive-through entrance is denied, Sandifer said he would simply move the entrance far enough to the east to comply with city code. But the new path would jeopardize a planned walkway featuring photographs of UNT and Fry Street history, he said.

The current proposed entrance “is too close to the Cool Beans entrance, and if we have to move it we can move it,” Sandifer said. “But it doesn’t make the project flow as well. It doesn’t work as well with the layout.”

Local historian Nita Thurman has been working on the historic-photograph display since May as a paid consultant for United Equities. She said the walkway would be an attractive public art project.

Thurman also said she believes public support exists for Fry Street Village, despite the vocal opposition.

“I think the overall project is well conceived, and I think it will be certainly an improvement in that area,” she said. “That area was so run down, and I think this is going to do some needed cleanup work.”

Ultimately, the planning commission and City Council will decide the fate of the drive-through by approving or denying a special-use permit at future meetings.

Council member Jack Thomson, whose district includes Fry Street, said he opposes a drive-through, even if its denial dooms Fry Street Village.

“I’ve made no bones about telling people that I don’t feel that a drive-through would be appropriate” for that location, Thomson said. “I would rather see us get a good project than one with a drive-through.”

LOWELL BROWN can be reached at 940-566-6882. His e-mail address is lmbrown@dentonrc.com