The new Buc-ee’s will take shape at Trollingwood-Hawfields Road near I-40/85 in Mebane, N.C., a city about 30 miles east of Greensboro and 45 miles northwest of Raleigh. Close by is rival Love’s Travel Stop, and about three miles down the road are the Tanger Outlets, home to everything from Kate Spade and Coach to Bath & Body Works and Nike.
WRAL in Raleigh reported May 28 that a Buc-ee’s spokesperson confirmed a groundbreaking will occur June 10 at the new Buc-ee’s site, which is on 34 acres. The store will be around 75,000 square feet and have 120 gas pumps and 600 parking spots.
Mebane Mayor Ed Hooks told WFMY in Greensboro road upgrades need to happen before work completes and a store opens. Currently a tentative date for opening is late 2027.
The popular travel stop is taking shape alongside a new mixed-use development called Third & Wood. Koury Corporation, the developer of the 82.9-acre project, is promoting Third & Wood as blending “modern amenities and small-town charm.” Third & Wood calls for 304,800 square feet of retail and restaurant space, plus an additional 27,700 square feet of restaurant space, along with 112,500 square feet for medical and 683 multifamily units. Target is an anchor tenant for the development, and Koury is anticipating 140,000 vehicles per day at Third & Wood.
Buc-ee’s will occupy a space right near the highway. Currently, Third on Wood is slowly rising while plenty of roadwork takes place nearby, including the installation of a brand-new highway overpass, per aerial footage shared to YouTube by user @heliflyer7.
The Mebane location marks the first North Carolina Buc-ee’s, a triumph for the Texas-born travel center after its first attempt in the Tar Heel State—the tiny Orange County town of Efland—fell through in 2021.
“While the mega gas stations attract customers who shop for food and fuel up at their hundred-plus pumps, they actively advertise themselves as sources of sparking clean and abundant restrooms,” reads the report. “That means the 24-7 facilities are constantly using clean water and producing sewage in large amounts.”
Despite the backlash, plenty of residents are excited to see a Buc-ee’s in their backyard. A “Buc-ee’s Mebane NC” Facebook page has 812 members. Folks don’t post too much there, but there’s certainly fervor: one reason post showed a photo of a stuffed Bucky the Beaver watching over the site.