Some students hope to bring two chain restaurants, Chipotle Mexican Grill and Dunkin’ Donuts, to Muncie.
Allison Hess, a freshman telecommunications major, started a petition on Change.org to bring Dunkin’ Donuts.
“I wanted to start this petition because when I was in high school I had a Dunkin’ Donuts really close to my house, so I was there almost every day,” Hess said. “So while I'm here at school, I am just constantly wanting Dunkin’ Donuts.”
Hess said she thinks the restaurant would do well because there are locations in the hometowns of some students and having one in Muncie would give them “that taste of home.”
“Dunkin' Donuts is also the cheaper option for coffee while offering breakfast sandwiches and donuts, and Starbucks cannot offer all of that,” Hess said.
So far, 363 people have signed the petition. The goal is 500 signatures. Hess said she is surprised by this because she didn’t think it would get over 100 signatures.
Chris Burr, director of non-traditional development for Dunkin’ Brands, said the company hopes to bring “signature coffees and baked goods to Ball State in the future.”
"We're thrilled that the residents of Muncie and the Ball State University community are so enthusiastic about bringing Dunkin’ Donuts to town,” Burr said. “While we have no immediate plans for a restaurant opening in the city, we are continuing to explore opportunities to develop future Dunkin' Donuts locations.”
Burr also said a location could be opened if an appropriate franchise candidate is interested or by developing a partnership directly with Ball State to develop restaurants on campus.
While Hess hopes to bring Dunkin’ Donuts to Muncie, Danny Miller, a sophomore music education major, started another petition in the hopes of bringing Chipotle Mexican Grill to Muncie.
Currently, 240 people have signed the petition. The goal is 500 signatures.
“I started the petition because Chipotle is one of my favorite restaurants and I think a college town like Muncie needs one,” Miller said. “The closest one is in Indy and I have driven to the Indy area to get Chipotle before because I love it so much.”
Miller said having a Chipotle on McGalliard would bring in a lot of profit for the company because of the other restaurants on that road and the high vehicle traffic.
“It would be cool to have one on Ball State's campus but I really want all of Muncie to benefit from the restaurant, not just Ball State students,” Miller said.
Miller plans to send the petition to Chipotle Mexican Grill as well as Muncie Mayor Dennis Tyler.
“I really want to make this a reality so if anyone who has experience with business knows how to do this better than I than I would love to work with them,” Miller said.
RELATED: Chipotle has no plans to come to Muncie, despite signs
Quinn Kelsey, communications and public relations manager for Chipotle Mexican Grill said while they are thrilled to see the enthusiasm to bring Chipotle to nearer to Ball State, they currently don't have any plans to open a restaurant in Muncie.
"While we’d love to be able to satisfy those burrito cravings in between classes and study sessions, we don’t currently have plans to open a restaurant in Muncie at the moment," Kelsey said.
Kelsey says they are always looking for new places to open and to "stay patient, Ball State, and maybe we’ll get there before too long."
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