Miss the taste of your late night blended Tropical Rebel drink? Or the caffeine from your breakfast coffee wake-up call in the morning? Well, a Dutch Bros is scheduled to be finished, located on the corner of Whitney Ranch Parkway and Wildcat Boulevard.
“We anticipate this location will be open in the late spring or early summer 2024,” Investor Relations Manager Sean Gallagher said.
This particular Dutch Bros has been in the works since January 2022 when they submitted their application of construction.
“Once [the application is approved] they have got an actual project that the city is behind,” Deputy Director of Community Development in the City of Rocklin Hunter Young said. “Then the developer can work with the engineering group to get the real details and construction documents that a contractor will use to go build.”
Young’s job in the Engineering Department is to attend meetings where he can discuss development projects and approve building plans with the help of other colleagues. Even if a building is approved right away, there are other factors that can affect the building process.
“Most of the contributing factors [to project stagnancy] are financially driven conversations, but the city is not in the driver’s seat,” Young said. “We can approve a project and it may never actually go to construction because the people responsible for building it suddenly can’t afford it.”
There are certain circumstances that can add to the project length, like adding a traffic light or widening the street next to the building.
“The city can talk to the developer and be like hey, you’re causing more traffic,” Young said. “Therefore, you’re on the hook financially to pay for and install, whether it’s widening the road or putting in a new traffic signal.”
Based on the distance the Dutch Bros will be from the school, there are expected to be some delays on the way to and from campus due to the increase in traffic.
“Just looking at the existing Dutch Bros that’s in Rocklin and the traffic jam that [it] creates, I believe it will cause delays,” Assistant Principal Mrs. Penny Shelton said. “That’s a super busy intersection off the freeway and coming to [school] too.”
Even though some students are excited about the new Dutch Bros, there are some who have mixed feelings, as not everyone will be in school when it opens.
“I am excited but a little upset that I’m a senior leaving now, but all the [future students] are going to have it, so that’s good,” Alexia Valencia said.
This location will also serve as a place for job opportunities, as they are hiring students who are interested.
“I would [consider working there],” Emma Simmons said. “Because, I don’t know, I just feel like it would be a really fun job, plus you could get free drinks.”
There are some benefits to having a Dutch Bros close to a school, but there are also some catches.
“I think about all the opportunities people are going to have to order it, DoorDash it, sneak off campus [and more], and then I think about the possible injuries that could happen when racing there or racing back – it does make me a little nervous,” Discipline Technician Mr. John Gonzalez said.
The new location provides a reward outlet for some, as it could serve as a break from academics.
“I think it’s going to be a great treat for students to go after school over to Dutch Bros,” Shelton said. “The Nugget Market that’s going in there is going to be wonderful too because we definitely need more businesses in this area.”
Dutch Bros serves to create drinks for everyone as well as establish a good connection with the community. Their mission since 1992 has been to create a fun environment for every customer.
“It’s about fun, it’s about people, and it’s about great coffee,” Travis Boersma, CEO of Dutch Bros, said.
