Two pieces of news reached the corner of Fourth Street and Route 66 within three weeks. In mid-September, a local restaurant owner closed a 40-year-old business and started turning the space into a drive-thru chicken spot. On October 2, the Arizona Daily Sun reported that one of the corner's last empty parcels had nonbinding interest from a national grocer and a drive-thru coffee chain. That story named Canyon del Rio as one of the reasons the site is attractive. The renovation is already happening. The grocery store is still a proposal. Both point the same way: the stretch of Fourth Street that Canyon Del Rio residents drive north on is being redesigned for quick stops.
Where each change stands as of early October 2026
- Open now: Fat Bagels at 2300 E. Route 66 and Fat Olives at 2308 E. Route 66.
- Under renovation: The Fat Hen, in the former Salsa Brava space at 2220 E. Route 66 Blvd. The coverage so far gives no opening date or hours.
- Proposed, nonbinding: Aldi and 7 Brew, on the 8.7-acre parcel at 2511 E. Route 66 across from Walgreens. Full city approval is anticipated in early 2027.
- Proposed, in review: a Dutch Bros. drive-through at 4317 Highway 89, near Flagstaff Mall.
Your neighborhood is part of the parcel's pitch
The Daily Sun's October 2 report calls the land at 2511 E. Route 66 one of the last undeveloped spaces where North Fourth Street meets Route 66. The parcel is owned by 66th & Fourth LLC. It recently got a boost when the Economic Collaborative of Northern Arizona featured it as a development opportunity and reported letters of intent from Aldi and 7 Brew.
The paper explains why the site is marketed the way it is. It points to the Canyon del Rio subdivision a mile south on Fourth Street, plus the J.W. Powell Boulevard extension, which is expected to bring more traffic in the coming years. The parcel's target uses are quick-service and casual dining restaurants, automotive services, a gas station, and shops. In other words, the plans for this corner assume the households along lower Fourth Street are the customers.
The land is zoned highway commercial. The Daily Sun describes it as site-ready, with sidewalks, gutters, and full utilities already in place. That means the slow, expensive groundwork is mostly finished. The remaining hurdles are approvals and signed tenants.
How far the paperwork has moved
The Daily Sun's reporting lays out the steps in order:
- A concept plan for a five-lot commercial subdivision has appeared in the City of Flagstaff's development status reports since January.
- The city's most recent update, on August 5, still showed that concept plan as in review.
- According to the parcel's sale and leasing materials, a preliminary site plan has since been approved.
- Full city approval is anticipated in early 2027.
A letter of intent shows serious interest. It is not a commitment. The Daily Sun says neither Aldi nor 7 Brew responded to its questions about the letters. For now, the grocery store is a reasonable possibility on a 2027 timeline. It is not on the calendar.
Why the Aldi name stands out
Arizona has 20 Aldi stores today. Eighteen are in the Valley, and the other two are in Casa Grande and Prescott Valley. By that count, Flagstaff has none, so a store at Fourth and Route 66 would be the chain's first in town.
7 Brew has a similar small footprint here. Only 3 of its more than 750 locations are in Arizona: two in Tucson and one in Queen Creek. The Arkansas-based chain recently won a $143 million bid for 73 closed Salad And Go locations, 41 of them in Arizona. Dutch Bros. had competed for many of those same stores. All of those 41 sites are in the Valley, Tucson, and Casa Grande. A Fourth Street location would push the brand north.
The change already happening is two doors from Fat Bagels
The parcel story is speculative. The renovation at 2220 E. Route 66 Blvd. is not. Owner John Conley announced on Facebook that Salsa Brava would close after 40 years. Its final day was a Saturday in mid-September, and work on the space began the following Monday.
The numbers Conley shared in the Daily Sun's coverage show how long the restaurant ran. More than 4.5 million people ate there over four decades. More than 1,000 employees worked there, and the business returned more than $3 million to the community. It won Best of Flag several times for tacos, salsa, wait staff, and Mexican food.
Conley said the change was planned well in advance:
"We've been working on a new concept here for quite some time and this Saturday is going to be our last day as Salsa Brava."
He told the Daily Sun he expects the new concept to last, and that part of his job is to create and innovate under employee ownership.
What The Fat Hen is set up to be
The clearest description so far comes from a job posting for the opening crew. It describes The Fat Hen as a fast-casual chicken restaurant focused on crispy chicken and cold drinks, with sides and sandwiches. The staff duties listed include dine-in, takeout, drive-thru, and delivery. Neither the posting nor the September closure coverage gives an opening date, hours, or a full menu.
One practical note: the old Salsa Brava website still shows online ordering and delivery, but the restaurant closed in September.
When The Fat Hen opens, Conley will run three restaurants on the same short stretch of Route 66: The Fat Hen at 2220, Fat Bagels at 2300, and Fat Olives at 2308. Breakfast bagels, a sit-down Italian dinner, and a drive-thru chicken window from one local owner within a few hundred feet of each other make this the most locally rooted part of the corner, even as national names line up across the street.
The pattern runs farther north
Taken together, the proposals share a format. The Fat Hen's job posting includes a drive-thru. 7 Brew is a drive-thru coffee chain. The 2511 parcel is marketed for quick-service food, a gas station, and automotive services.
The same thing shows up farther up the road. On October 1, the Daily Sun reported that a concept plan for what would be Flagstaff's third Dutch Bros. is in review at 4317 Highway 89, near Flagstaff Mall. The application, submitted August 18, proposes a 986-square-foot drive-through and gives no opening date.
From Canyon Del Rio, the route north on Fourth Street to Route 66 and then on toward the mall now has proposals for a grocery store, two coffee drive-throughs, and a chicken drive-thru. The local business is the only one actually under construction. Every national brand on the list is still at the concept or letter-of-intent stage.
Something to do before any of it opens
The mall end of the corridor already has a few October events. The Sunnyside Neighborhood Association is hosting the free Fiesta del Mundo Celebration on Sunday, October 18, from noon to 5 p.m. at Flagstaff Mall, 4650 N. U.S. Highway 89. The listing promises crafts, live music, folklórico dancers, food, and a beer garden.
Two more events follow at the same address. The 13th Annual AOKFlag Zombie Community Blood Drive Extravaganza, sponsored by AOKFlag and Vitalant, runs October 29 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. A free trick-or-treating event and costume contest is set for October 31 from 3 to 5 p.m.
The next updates to watch are an opening date for The Fat Hen at 2220 E. Route 66 Blvd. and the city's full-approval decision on 2511 E. Route 66, expected in early 2027.
If you own in Canyon Del Rio and want to talk through what a new grocery and drive-thru corner a mile up Fourth Street could mean for your home, Blake Cundick follows these filings closely and is glad to walk through them with you. Let's Connect.
