FARMINGTON HILLS, Mich. (WXYZ) — Dozens of Farmington Hills residents used their voices to stop a controversial plan to bring a Sheetz gas station and convenience store to their neighborhood.
When we say people are passionate about this, we mean it. Concerned residents took the podium before city council for hours Monday night. Sheetz hoped to set up the new location at the site of the former Ginopolis restaurant on 12 Mile and Middlebelt roads.
Sheetz was hoping to stake claim in the city, but residents say the 24-hour aspect is a big turn-off. The other reason: there's already locally owned gas stations in the area.
"We don’t need this here," one commenter said. "We for sure don’t need it now."
Dozens of Farmington Hills residents came to Monday's city council meeting. All but one of the residents were against a 24-hour Sheetz gas station going up where the restaurant once stood.
Previous coverage: Farmington Hills Planning Commission approves Sheetz location, residents frustrated
"The people around there we have this visceral reaction to hearing of a 24-hour gas station," one commenter said. "Selling liquor all night long, staying open. We have a very quite environment."
"The square of 12 Mile, 13 Mile, Orchard and Middlebelt, we already about one to eight gas stations in that square mile. Do we need another gas station?" one commenter asked. "I don't think we do."
Residents are saying the 12 Mile and Middlebelt intersection already has two gas stations. Sheetz said in their presentation that a lot of the $8.5 million project will go back into the community, hiring local crews to build the structure and locals to work at the location, with a representative laying out the additional changes they had planned.
"To make us fit better with the community we’ve added additional evergreen buffering," said Alex Siwiki with Sheetz. "We’ve done additional pedestrian access. We’ve put the 6-foot tall vinyl fence along."
One resident did vouch for the project, saying a 24-hour business would have helped when his kids were little.
"I guess I'm the lone dissenter tonight," he said. "I was very disappointed with how little 24/7 operation there was when I needed to get milk for my son or get cough medicine or whatever."
Even council members spoke out against the development before voting, saying between Farmington and Farmington Hills, there's 41 gas stations, twice as many as neighboring communities. Just before 1 a.m., council members shot down Sheetz.
There are 24-hour gas stations near by right now, they're off of 696. Council members added another concern they had of Sheetz: one of these two gas stations could drive the other out of business, and a vacant gas station is a lot harder to re-develop as opposed to a vacant building.
