GREENFIELD — Officials with the City of Greenfield took a stand against future gas station and convenience stores with gas station developments on the city’s north side this week. Officials with the city from two separate boards passed measures stating there will be no such developments in the area in the immediate future.
The Greenfield City Council and Planning Commission met earlier this week to address the issue of future gas station development by passing an ordinance stopping any more of that kind of development on the north side of Greenfield.
Greenfield City Council President Dan Riley noted the council as well as the Greenfield Planning Commission passed a zoning change that will not permit any more gas stations at this point.
“We have 16 gas stations or convenient-type gas stations already in Greenfield now, and we feel that is ample,” Riley said. “This will only affect the north commercial district from McKenzie Road to 300.”
Riley noted, as far as city officials know, there had not been any official applications or purchase of land in that area, but there was great speculation that the Wawa Convenience store company had plans in the works to build a station on West New Road.
Information has been noted on their company’s website and via a press release that Wawa has plans for an Indiana expansion to add some 15 gas station type stores to open in mid-2025. While one of the official sites listed to have a station built is at U.S. 40 and CR 600W in Hancock County, Wawa officials had also listed another gas station to be developed on North State Street and West New Road in Hancock County.
The two Hancock County sites are among 13 listed as “under contract” as of Sept. 2023. However, this new ordinance would nix the development on West New Road.
“As far as I know, that company does not own any property in Greenfield,” Riley said. “We did hear some scuttlebutt that there were a couple of gas stations interested in property up in that area, but we passed those zoning changes to not permit any additional gas stations as this point.”
Riley noted while the view can always be revisited and voted on again down the line, for now they feel good about keeping that kind of traffic under control in an already busy area.
“I don’t know that that idea would be thought of as favorably at this point,” Riley said. “We’re just trying to make sure that with that piece of property up there where it was rumored someone was interested in for a gas station, but nothing had been filed, and we just wanted to make sure we don’t have any more traffic congestion from gas stations.”
The zoning measure changes passed unanimously by both the Planning Commission and City Council, officials noted. The measure became official immediately after passage and has been signed by Mayor Guy Titus and Clerk Treasurer Lori Elmore.
The Daily Reporter did reach out to officials from Wawa to see how the decision by Greenfield officials affects their develop elsewhere in the county, but did not hear back by press time.
