Lazy Dog Restaurant’s long-delayed plans for Mount Laurel have shifted again, with the California-based chain now proposing to renovate the former Don Pablo’s building on Nixon Drive instead of tearing it down and starting fresh. The restaurant’s presentation to the township Planning Board, originally set for November 12, has been pushed to at least December 10.
The postponement was confirmed by a restaurant spokesperson, according to TAPinto Mount Laurel. Bill Giegerich, Mount Laurel’s director of economic and community development, said the Lazy Dog team requested the delay in order to respond to comments and questions raised by the Planning Board’s engineer, fire marshal and planner. It’s the latest twist in a project that first cleared a township hurdle back in August 2024, when the Mount Laurel Planning Board approved the company’s application to demolish the Nixon Drive building, situated near the Moorestown border, and construct a new eatery in its place.
From Demolition to Retrofit
That 2024 approval, recorded in meeting minutes as application PB 2410, covered a preliminary and final site plan for a new restaurant at 1361 Nixon Drive and carried unanimously among board members present, per the Mount Laurel Planning Board meeting minutes. The minutes also note the original application sought relief tied to setbacks, parking and signage. But more than two years later, the plan on the table looks nothing like what the board signed off on.
According to 42freeway.com, the new application would renovate the existing building instead of tearing it down, a reversal from the original proposal that called for demolishing the former Don Pablo’s outright. The footprint changes under the revised plan are limited to a few hundred square feet, the site reports, accommodating additions like a beer cooler, an electrical room and a fire sprinkler room.
What’s In and What’s Out
The revised plans do not appear to include an outdoor dining area, per the same source, and the application states that no live entertainment or dancing is proposed at the Mount Laurel location. Lazy Dog does hope to offer beer and wine alongside takeout food purchases, the outlet notes.
The road to this point has been bumpy. Back in July 2025, a representative identified as Swiger told TAPinto Mount Laurel that the company had experienced unexpected planning and permitting phases and did not yet have a confirmed construction timeline, while still saying Lazy Dog was looking forward to moving ahead. By August 2026, TAPinto Mount Laurel reported that the chain would submit a new application to the zoning board. Swiger more recently said there was no further comment to offer on hearing timing or application details.
Developer Deadlines and Lazy Dog’s Footprint
Giegerich has also noted that a developer generally has two years from a council’s adoption of a resolution to begin construction, a detail relevant given how much time has elapsed since the 2024 approval. Lazy Dog describes itself as a canine-friendly eatery and, according to its company website, is a 24-year-old company with locations in about eight states, including an operating restaurant in Fairfax, Virginia, and a coming-soon location listed for King of Prussia. Whether the Mount Laurel location will ultimately mirror those other restaurants or the more scaled-back renovation now on the table remains to be seen when the matter returns to the Planning Board.
