April 20, 2024
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Thorntons gas station on Route 31 in Crystal Lake to open this fall

Gas station also will feature new convenience store; use for 1-acre out-lot not yet determined

By Cassie Buchman

A Thorntons gas station and convenience store off Route 31 in Crystal Lake is expected to open in the fall. (Cassie Buchman)

A new Thorntons gas station is set to open later this year in Crystal Lake on Route 31.

Developers expect a fall opening for the new gasoline and convenience store at 911 Tek Drive, said Mike MacKinnon, managing partner at Bluestone Single Tenant Properties, which is the company behind the project.

The Thorntons development was approved unanimously by the Crystal Lake City Council in February 2020, Crystal Lake City Planner Elizabeth Maxwell said.

Part of the location’s appeal for Bluestone was the traffic counts and the intensity of nearby businesses, MacKinnon said.

“There was just a lot of activity in that intersection,” he said.

The Thorntons will act predominantly as a traditional gasoline station with pumps for cars in the front with a few diesel lanes in the rear for trucks.

Maxwell said the station won’t be a truck stop with regular restroom facilities and no showers.

However, she said that the Thorntons convenience store is really large, so people will be able to get supplies and groceries from there as well as gas.

“It’ll be able to service a lot of the long-haul guys that use Route 31, so that’s definitely a benefit,” Maxwell said. “And on that south end of town, there’s not really a lot of other gas stations.”

As part of the Thorntons project, Bluestone will have to complete street improvements to Tek Drive and on Route 31.

Deceleration lanes are set to go on Route 31, while the improvements on Tek Drive will be minimal, including items like restriping, MacKinnon said.

A traffic study was done on the development, and everything looked good with no major concerns, Maxwell said.

The Thorntons property also has a 1-acre out-lot immediately south of the gas station.

MacKinnon said Bluestone received lots of letters of intent from various users on this part of the property, but nothing’s been committed to at this point.

“[Bluestone] worked with us to create a nice-looking building,” Maxwell said. “It will look really good down there, and hopefully, it will be very successful.”