Good Afternoon,
I attempted to remove a wayspot that is a Tim Hortons yesterday, and in about 26 hours, it came back saying that the removal was rejected.
I’m surprised by this because I thought that it would be deleted by “Generic Business.”
If I could have some help with this, then that would be greatly appreciated,
Thanks,
JNR
Address: Birchley Island, Wolverhampton Rd, Oldbury B69 4RJ
Generic business rejection is not for restaurants. It’s for things like an accounting firm or kitchen appliance store.
Regardless, restaurants, whether they are an international chain or local are equally eligible, so long as the submitter can prove it is “great” under the social category. One way Niantic suggests as a way to prove “great”-ness is popularity and proving popularity by using reviews.
You didn’t submit the wayspot so for all we know the submitter had a valid case.
That is true, actually, I’ll wait for a response from Niantic but thank you for the clear up.
Removal criteria, as we have seen over the years, is slightly different from eligibility criteria. While this may not be eligible for acceptance now, it may also not get removed. I wouldn’t have my hopes high.
Not sure if Niantic will answer you in this part of the forum. There is a section in the appeals part of this forum that you can post there. It will ask for more information, location and such. There you will get an answer from Staff.
Am I not allowed to change the location of the post now?
(or should I just repost this in Wayspot Appeals?)
Thanks for all the help by the way.
@Mystogan5097 @AgentX1976 @RGTGO
Staff or ambassadors can do that. Tagging @NianticAtlas @NianticAaron for visibility.
I have moved this over to Appeals for you. Please look at the template in other appeals and make sure you have included all the information.
Thanks for the appeal, @JNRAwsome ,
This Wayspot doesn’t meet our criteria for removal at this time.
Thank you. 
Just some quick questions: was this a Wayspot being used as a stop/gym, or was this being used as a Power Spot? Is it by any chance a sponsored Wayspot, having the pink ribbon on it?
BTW, @RGTGO Tim Hortons is a large chain coffee and donut shop, mainly in Canada and parts of the northern US. It’s similar to Dunkin’ Donuts, if a reference is needed. In Canada, they are a big advertiser for the NHL and CFL, so they are no small non-genera business. They have some international locations, with quite a few in the UK: Find a tims | Tim Hortons | Freshly prepared food & delicious brewed coffee
I would not call this Tim Hortons anything of significance, just a regular one that similar to the ones in Canada and the US, just looking at it on Google Maps, looking at many similar reviews that one may see for a chain coffee/donut shop, and pretty standard in design/decor: https://maps.app.goo.gl/ymssaNHCbWRbdXzu5
The wayspot is a Pokestop, not sponsored.
The location has stood for 3 years.
That’s great, but my point still stands. Being an international franchise does not automatically disqualify it from a being a “great place to socialize”. To validate its “great”-ness you can use reviews or demonstrate how it has a cultural impact. For all I know it could have 1 million 5/5 reviews or that restaurant could be a major donor to local charities or assist in fundraising for local causes. How would I know? I am not going to investigate.
As an outsider it is unfair for me to judge a specific establishment’s popularity or cultural significance just based off of quick google searches.
The submitter thought it was significant and enough reviewers did too. I didn’t see any of the supporting information nor am I a local so I have no right in questioning its validity. Enough people have judged it so.
And proof has been found that it was submitted shortly after opening, using a 3rd party photo, so it wasn’t popular even back when it was submitted. I doubt the submitter proved that it met criteria, as most chains get rejected as well. I would have rejected this in a heartbeat since it’s a chain.
Well, I didn’t know that. 
It’s not always easy to know if a photo is 3rd party or not, but never be afraid to do an image search if you think something might be off with the photo while reviewing.
Yeah, I forget it exists sometimes 
Do you think that Niantic should take another look at this?
Or should I just take a new photo and delete the current, third party photo?
Awesome. You are free to speculate regarding what you think what was going on within the submitter’s mind at the time of nomination. Thank you for letting me know you would reject restaurants because they are large chains. I, in turn, would like to let you know that I do not do that.
Being that staff has said no to removal, I would take a new photo and have the 3rd party one removed.
There’s a Starbucks being built near where I live, and I am hoping it doesn’t get submitted once open. We have a great locally-owned coffee shop just down the street that has a Wayspot already!
