HAYDEN, Idaho — Community development officials in Hayden say they have not talked to a popular fast food chain despite a sign announcing its arrival in the city.
Christi Cooper, a permit technician with City of Hayden Community Development, told KREM that the city has not had any contact from Chick-fil-A regarding a location in the city.
Director of the Hayden Community Development team, Melissa Cleveland told KREM 2 in a voicemail that she believes the sign might be a prank.
"There haven't even been preliminary discussions for that type of a restaurant going into the city of Hayden. So I think that it's a prank because I just can't imagine that large of an organization moving forward without at least talking to the city," she said.
The sign in Hayden has sparked a frenzy on social media among chicken enthusiasts.
Someone posted a photo of the sign in the North Idaho Life Foodies group on Facebook, writing, "Have we talked about this?" The post has nearly 100 comments.
KREM set out to investigate the location of this mysterious sign — and it is indeed there. The sign, situated next to Zip's on 9310 N. Government Way, reads, "Coming soon. Chick-fil-A."
Cooper could not speak to policies for putting up "coming soon" signs in Hayden.
Chick-fil-A's corporate office has not yet responded to KREM's request for comment on the possible location.
KREM also searched for documents related to a Chick-fil-A location in Hayden but was unable to find any.
It's possible that we shouldn't get our hopes too high, though.
Spokane residents were thrilled at the possibility of a Chick-fil-A opening in the northern part of the city after a sign advertised a proposed Chick-fil-A and called for public comments.
The sign later came down and the company said it had no immediate plans to open up a shop in the area.
An application for the Spokane location has been submitted and the plan is under review, but no construction permits have been filed at last check.
Gonzaga students also thought Chick-fil-A was opening on campus, only to be disappointed later.
The company's website listed Gonzaga as a restaurant location in August 2018 but university officials later confirmed that was not the case.
The closest Chick-fil-A right now is located in Moscow on the University of Idaho's campus.