Amid listserv chatter about boycotting Chipotle for giving Fairlawn the cold shoulder—even turning down the offer of free rent—a community member asked the burrito chain to explain itself. Chipotle’s response is below.

A,

Thank you for writing us! We’ve been watching this area for about three years now, and we’re really happy to see the area changing. But we feel that the area is still a long way from having the right day parts necessary to support one of our restaurants. We’ll be there at some point but probably not at least for the next 18 months when three more developments come on line. Furthermore, it is the initial density of people and capital cost that weigh most heavily on our bottom line – so even with free rent, unfortunately our numbers just don’t work at this point in time. That said, we are definitely pushing the envelope on new deals and going into trade areas that have challenged or limited day parts in the DC area for the future, so please keep your fingers crossed, and we appreciate your time and attention.

Sincerely,

Joe Stupp

Chipotle