Plans to construct a new United Dairy Farmers (UDF) gas station at the company’s current 123 W. William St. location in Delaware are nearing final approval. During its meeting on Wednesday, the Delaware Planning Commission approved the final development plan for the site reconstruction, sending the proposal to city council for further consideration.
Proposed is a 6,055-square-foot building to replace the current gas station building, which spans 3,350 square feet. In addition to expanding the building, the fuel canopy would also be replaced and expanded to include four fueling pumps and a total of eight nozzles.
To make way for the expansion, UDF purchased the three properties directly east of the gas station, and those buildings have since been demolished.
Included in the site improvements would be a total of three access points to the gas station. The West William Street access points would include a right-in, right-out-only curb cut and a full-movement curb cut that would be shared with Tim Hortons if an easement agreement can be reached with Tim Hortons. Planning and Zoning Administrator Lance Schultz said it is his understanding that easement is currently being worked out between the two parties.
Along South Liberty Street, the full-movement access point would essentially remain where it is currently located. Tim Hortons has approached the city about reconfiguring its drive-thru, including the elimination of the eastern cub cut, and sharing the western curb cut with UDF. Documents for the proposal said “both of these projects represent a significant opportunity to improve existing conditions on both sites from a traffic perspective to the benefit of the public and patrons overall.”
Last September, the commission approved the preliminary development plan for UDF to reconstruct the gas station, as well as the conditional use permit required for both the gas station itself and construction to happen within the city’s 100-year floodplain, in which the gas station sits.
Following approval from the commission in 2020, the Delaware Board of Zoning Appeals approved a buffer setback variance that was needed in order to start construction within 15 feet of the Delaware Run buffer zone. The existing UDF gas station currently sets within the 15-foot setback, with the piped Delaware Run flowing under most of the building and pump canopy. Both the building and the canopy exist within the floodway for the Delaware Run, and they would remain within the floodway under the current proposal.
However, should the project receive final approval, the main building would be shifted further east, with only a small portion of the building existing over the piped Delaware Run. “The proposal here, while slightly increasing the amount of the run which is piped, would actually set the proposed building back slightly further from the run and floodway than it currently is, while significantly enhancing circulation and safety both in the site and to the adjacent street network,” Planning and Community Development Director Dave Efland said last year of the project.
The first reading for the proposal will be held at the next council meeting, which is scheduled for Monday, Aug. 9.
