[AustinYIMBY]

I completely agree with keeping low-cost national brands. As someone who isn't making that big tech money (yet, hopefully...) I find myself patronizing these options pretty frequently.
I have always wondered why they don't incorporate these establishments into the new developments. I would bet that it has a lot to do with the higher rents of ground level retail in mixed use buildings. It could also be that the hassle of fitting the specific needs of these restaurants (drive-thru, amount of seating, specific branding) is too much for both parties to deal with. And like I mentioned before, the fact that they would have to shut down for several years, on some occasions, during construction. Most of the new fast food places are built in a very short time period, so I'm sure a major construction time frame is not attractive to the franchisees.