Council Sets Table for New Gas Station, Dunkin’ in Growing North Tuscaloosa

A divided City Council paved the way for a new gas station, coffee shop and more in a fast-growing part of North Tuscaloosa on Tuesday.

As the Thread reported in December, one service station is already planned for vacant land where New Watermelon Road meets the soon-to-be-open expansion of McWright's Ferry Road.

Now a second one will likely be built just beside the first, this one featuring a Dunkin', a Domino's and more.

At their Tuesday meeting, the council heard from Mark Hearing of Hearing Construction, who is partnering with businessman Ric Mayers on this project, which is proposed for 6005 New Watermelon Road.

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OUTRUN, DUNKIN' & DOMINO'S

The new station will be an OUTRUN, the brand launched by Mayers' Midstates Petroleum with existing locations in Tuscaloosa, Cullman and Thomasville. Hearing presented new renderings of the proposed development and said it will complement that area of north Tuscaloosa.

"After looking at the drawings, you see it's going to be something that's very upscale and very nice," Hearing said.

The plan also calls for a Dunkin on one wing of the service station and a Domino's Pizza on the other. The property also features three office tenant spaces attached to the same property.

PREZONING AGREEMENT

The development property is currently in Tuscaloosa County, not the city, but the developers are expected to annex into the city after the council voted in favor of "prezoning" the land to suit their proposal, similar to how the first gas station was approved last year.

It's a bit of a Catch-22 for the council. These landowners have the option to remain in the county and build their developments to standards that the city council says are less rigorous than those outlined in city code. Bringing the property into the city means a better buildout and generates tax revenue for the city. It also helps the developers by allowing Sunday sales of alcohol, which are still illegal outside city limits in Tuscaloosa County.

But the property owners won't agree to annex into the city unless there's an agreement in place for rezoning the land to what best suits their development plans.

LOCAL OPPOSITION

One voice spoke out against the plan, nearby resident Alan Weldon, who also opposed the first gas station approved in December.

"This is the fifth or sixth time I've been up here fighting a gas station since November," Weldon told the council. "The future land use map and Framework identified this [land] as Traditional Neighborhood Edge and I think it would be well served to be not commercial, but residential, so we're opposed to that. If it's got to be commercial, so be it, but we've already got one gas station approved in the adjacent property there. Not really sure why two people want to have gas stations right next to each other, but here we are."

Weldon also noted the same property owners hold an additional two lots nearby, where he believes they plan to build boat storage units, further disrupting what has been a strictly residential area to date.

The "prezoning" got approved by a razor-thin 4-3 split vote from a divided council. Norman Crow, who represents District 3 where the development is proposed, voted no. So did Lee Busby and John Faile.

Joe Eatmon, Kip Tyner, Raevan Howard and Cassius Lanier voted yes for the preemptive rezoning, and the motion passed. The actual annexation is expected at a future meeting.

For more coverage of the project as it continues through the approval process and other news out of City Hall, stay connected to the Tuscaloosa Thread.