St. Charles aldermen voice concerns about proposed gas station planned for East Main Street

Several aldermen are questioning whether the site of a former bank building on St. Charles’ east side is the best place for a Casey’s General Store and gas station.

Alderman reviewed concept plans for the property at 2600 E. Main St. during the St. Charles City Council’s Planning and Development Committee meeting on June 14. The property is adjacent to the Foxfield Commons shopping center.

Plans call for the bank building to be razed and a 4,000-square-foot convenience store to be built as part of the project, which would also include a gas station with 16 pumps. Casey’s sells made-from-scratch pizza and it is the fifth largest pizza chain in the United States.

A few aldermen, including 3rd Ward Alderman Paul Lencioni, questioned if the site was suited for a gas station.

“I would love to have a Casey’s in St. Charles,” he said. “If it doesn’t work right, I would hate to see it abandoned.”

Casey’s would need to obtain a special use permit to build a gas station at the location.

“This property is located within a PUD that does not allow gas stations, but the underlying zoning does allow for gas stations,” city planner Rachel Hitzemann told aldermen. “So the special use would be to allow the gas station use in the PUD.

First Ward Alderman Dan Stellato was concerned the gas station would add to traffic problems at the site. Stellato said he would like to see a traffic light installed at Main Street and Fieldgate Drive in order to improve safety.

“People making a left turn movement, it’s difficult today,” he said. “Adding the additional cars onto it, I would feel much more comfortable if there was a signal there.”

Two additional access points are being proposed as part of the project, with a right-in only approach being proposed on the southeast side of the property off of Main Street/Route 64. An additional access point is being proposed in the northwest corner off of Fieldgate Drive.

The Illinois Department of Jurisdiction, which has jurisdiction over Route 64, will have to determine the feasibility of the right-in approach on Main Street. Second Ward Alderman Rita Payleitner voiced concerns about the impact that electric cars will have on gas stations.

“In the last six months, auto manufacturers have made very public their e-car projections,” she said. “And there’s all kinds of speculation in Forbes and other magazines that are predicting your typical gas stations will become maybe not obsolete but certainly the need for them will be greatly diminished. What happens when the tide turns? Is there a plan for repurposing this property? What will that take? That’s my concern.”

In response, civil engineer Eric Tracy said Casey’s is interested in the location because “they feel that it’s a viable location for them to have a good business model.”

“That’s a really good question,” Tracy said in responding to Payleitner’s concerns. “I just don’t have a good answer for you. The convenience store is a big part of what they do. The pizza is a big part of what they do in addition to the fuel. When we come in for a formal application, I’ll make sure we have a good answer for you.”

Building on Payleitner’s question, 2nd Ward Alderman Ryan Bongard wanted to know more about why Casey’s was interested in the location.

“What’s the appeal for Casey’s to make this type of investment?” he asked Tracy. “To my colleague’s point, in an industry that 10 years from now, could be changing dramatically. Twenty years from now, we might be pulling tanks out of the ground because we don’t need them any more. You’re not on Randall, you’re not on Route 59. Why this location? What’s the appeal?”

In response, Tracy noted the location is on Main Street, which carries significant traffic.

“Casey’s is a convenience store,” he said. “It’s all about convenience, getting in and out. A lot of what they look for in these sites is traffic projections and they analyze other locations that offer fuel. Even though it might seem there’s a gas station right down the street, to them, there’s enough of a market for them to be able to capture and provide that service to customers. And in addition to that, again, the pizza’s a very big part of a very big part of their business. This is a location they feel will get a lot of traffic.”

First Ward Alderman Ron Silkaitis, who spent 43 years in the auto industry, said it will take 20 to 30 years before “we get half the population driving electric cars.”

“Twenty to 30 years is probably the average life of a gas station anyway,” he said.