Members of the Huber Heights planning commission have voted to recommend a rezoning and a basic development plan for a proposed Buc-ee’s.
The company plans to develop a 53-acre site near I-70 — the first in Ohio. Preliminary drawings for the Buc’ee’s near the I-70 and Ohio 235 interchange show a 74,000-square-foot convenience store, 120 gas pumps, nearly 700 parking spaces and 24 Tesla charging stations.
The development is expected to see a significant increase in traffic. Aaron Sorrell, Huber Heights interim city planner, said traffic studies show Ohio 235 will likely get 1,000 more travelers during the peak morning and evening hours.
That will require some changes to the road. Though Scott Ratcliff, a project engineer for Buc-ee’s, said they’re working on that.
“We have worked for months now with the [Ohio] Department of Transportation. We are working with them diligently related to some of the cross access and those things. Those things will be worked out, exact accounts and so forth for those particular movements.”
Sorrell noted ODOT will need to complete road improvements to accommodate the increased traffic, potentially including a right-turning lane for driver’s going into Buc-ee’s and a bypass lane for travelers who do not intend to stop. He also clarified that, to his knowledge, Buc-ee’s is responsible for road improvements and developer’s have not approached the city for financial assistance.
“The engineers have been working from the very beginning with ODOT on the traffic impacts and are going to make a substantial investment in infrastructure adding capacity specifically for this site,” Sorrell said.
There’s two smaller buildings within the site that will be demolished. As far as the rezoning request, developers are asking the city to approve the rezoning of three smaller lots within the site to planned commercial — the site is largely farmland.
The project doesn’t have an estimated timeline yet, though Sorrell said the city is not concerned about the developers ability to finance and develop the site in reasonable time.
The Huber Heights City Council will now need to approve the rezoning and basic development plan for the project to move forward.
Alejandro Figueroa is a corps member with Report for America, a national service program that places journalists into local newsrooms.
