The standard design structure of McDonald's does not work in other communities. As a matter of fact, some McDonald's branches are undergoing serious changes in their designs to make them more appealing and enticing.
Elle Decor shared that the McDonald's restaurant located in Freeport, Maine has the total different look and feeling from the usual one. According to Design You Trust, the classy and unique look of the restaurant has something to do with the strict compliance of the appearance of the building on Main Street. And McDonald's gladly adhered to that.
To add more to that, the interior of the restaurant also has its classy approach. Gone are those usual plastic tables and red and yellow walls. Once inside the restaurant, it feels like a relaxing and comfortable dining area. There are floral curtains, warm lamps and wooden tables and chairs.
Back in March 2013, Portland Press Herald reported that McDonald's in Freeport gave a brighter idea for design and development standards. Communities are said to use this in order to attract a "village-style development."
Terry Schwarz the director of the Cleveland Urban Design Collaborative said that "In most cases, a national franchise will have a prototypical plan or building footprint that they will use unless the community has something it expects, asks, or in some cases, mandates." That's what the case is in Freeport's McDonald's.
Meanwhile, there are also other McDonald's franchise restaurants that got some unique looks. There is also a Gregorian mansion-style McDonald's located in Long Island which is known as the Denton House. The initial plan of McDonald's when they purchased the historic landmark was to tear it down and replace it with the standard restaurant. But then the citizens of New Hyde Park worked hard to secure the building which was built in 1987. And that prompted McDonald's to restore the property. They worked with it accordingly and were still able to preserve the beauty of the landmark.