But just after the entity Buc-ee’s EPCO, LLC, submitted development plans for Buc-ee’s IH 25, Exit 163, local officials are already throwing some roadblocks in place.
On Wednesday, the El Paso County Planning and Community Development Department notified Buc-ee’s that its request to define itself as a “convenience store” under county code was rejected. That’s because the Buc-ee’s proposal for I-25 near Palmer Lake and about 20 miles north of Colorado Springs, which was submitted June 15, calls for a 74,000-square-foot travel center, plus 120 fuel pump stations, which is customary for most Buc-ee’s developments.
But the specific swath of land Buc-ee’s is eyeing in El Paso County is approved for a commercial use, or a convenience store, but not a gas station or truck stop.
“The proposed facility includes a combination of characteristics, impacts, and design elements that are mixed and uncommon with unincorporated El Paso County,” read the planning and community development department’s letter dated July 1. “These factors make it difficult to categorize the use under any single existing definition.
“Based on the definitions, historical approvals, and comparative analysis, staff finds it difficult to classify the proposed use,” the letter continued. “Because it is unclear whether the use meets the LDC definition of a “Convienence Store,” staff cannot determine whether it is sufficiently similar to allowed uses within the C-1 zoning district to qualify as an allowed use.”
This doesn’t mean the proposal is dead; in fact, Buc-ee’s was given 30 days to appeal the determination.
The Buc-ee’s proposed for El Paso County, according to the original applicant’s request, calls for “a Buc-ee’s convenience store offering convenience-oriented retail items and petroleum fuel sales for passenger vehicles.” It would have—along with the 74,000 square feet of interior Buc-ee’s retail and the 120 fuel pumps—approximately 20 electric vehicle charging stations and around 790 parking spaces, plus associated infrastructure.