ROMULUS, Mich. (WXYZ) — Sheetz broke ground on its first Michigan location on Thursday afternoon.
The major restaurant, convenience chain and gas station will be in Romulus at 33380 Wick Rd. near the intersection of Wick Rd. and Vining Rd.
Sheetz plans to open 50-60 stores in the state of Michigan over the next five to six years. The company President/CEO says it's a part of a $500 million investment.
"You’re going to see things like drive-thrus with indoor seating and outdoor seating, lots of parking, mobile ordering and delivering, pretty heavy on the food side of things," said Travis Sheetz as he described the business.
The chain has made attempts to begin building storefronts in Rochester Hills, Livonia and Waterford Township but were met with some hurdles. 7 action news learned at the top of the year, Sheetz has decided to pull back on its plans for locations in both Rochester Hills and Waterford Township.
"We face opposition and hurdles, that’s expected. That’s not anything new. Particularly when you don’t know our brand. Until you get open, it’s kind of difficult. You have to prove it out," said Sheetz.
Thursday, dozens of Sheetz employees and Romulus residents packed inside of a tent for the ground breaking.
"I haven’t been to a Sheetz. I’ve been to something similar to Sheetz so I’m pretty excited," said Wendy Harmon who is a Romulus resident and serves on the Chamber of Commerce. "I’ve only been in Romulus for about 6-7 years and so I’ve seen a lot of changes and growth potential around here and we’ve been kind of stagnant for a while so I wanted to be a part of the excitement in seeing new things come here."
Along with the storefront, the company donated $10,000 to both Forgotten Harvest and The Special Olympics of Southeast Michigan. They also announced plans for an ongoing partnership with the Special Olympics.
“It means the world to us,” said Tim Hileman who is the president of Michigan Special Olympics. “As they shared today, we received a $10,000 check that will go right to our local programs. So that fund will go to equipment, uniforms, support for increasing our athletes and presence.”
The Romulus location is expected to open to the public in late 2024.
