At the November 7, 2024, Stafford County Board of Supervisors meeting, residents shared divided opinions on a proposed Buc-ee's Travel Center development at the corner of Courthouse Road and Austin Ridge Drive, near a Publix store. While some attendees supported the development for its economic potential, others raised concerns about environmental impact and long-term viability.
Among the notable points discussed was Buc-ee's promise of competitive wages. The company offers hourly rates of $18 to $21 for associates and $20 to $23 for team leads. More senior roles, such as department managers, earn between $25 and $33 per hour. In contrast, according to Buc-ee's website, assistant general managers and general managers make salaries starting at $125,000 and reaching up to $225,000.
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Stafford County faces mixed reactions from the community regarding the proposed Buc-ee's development, a massive travel center known for its signature barbeque and Beaver Nuggets.
Buc-ee's has applied for a conditional use permit to build a 74,000-square-foot convenience store on 36 acres along Courthouse Road, next to Interstate 95 at exit 140, near the Embrey Mill neighborhood. If approved by the Board of Supervisors, the new Buc-ee’s location will feature 120 gas pumps and could significantly alter the local landscape.
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Buc-ee's wants to build a new store in Stafford County and name the street where it would sit after itself—Buc-ee's Boulevard.
The Texas-based company that operates a chain of Walmart-like gas stations and convenience stores aims to build its third location in the state on 36 acres at Courthouse Road and Austin Ridge Drive, near Interstate 95. However, the would-be Buc-ee's Boulevard was to be named Israel Rodriguez Drive for Israel (Izzy) Rodriguez, a Rockhill Volunteer Rescue Squad member who died while answering a call on January 28, 1998, to help a crash victim during a rain storm. His ambulance left the road and struck a tree.
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Stafford County officials clarified that there will be no hearing during the Board of Supervisors meeting on Tuesday, May 7, regarding the proposed Buc-ee's gas station.
This clarification comes after inaccuracies reported by WUSA-TV, which the county has asked to correct.
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We first told you about it in November, and now the Walmart of gas stations has made it official.
Stafford County’s website shows Buc-ees, known for its signature barbeque and Beaver Nuggets, applied for a conditional use permit to build a gas station on 36 acres on Courthouse Road next to Interstate 95 exit 140 in Stafford.
Should the Board of Supervisors approve its conditional use permit, the new 74,000-square-foot Buc-ee’s convenience store, complete with 120 gas pumps, will open outside the Embrey Mill neighborhood.
No public hearings are scheduled on the matter. The beloved roadside megastore was founded in Texas in 1982.
The Stafford location would be the third Buc-ees in Virginia. The mega gas station will build locations on I-64 in New Kent County and on I-81 in Harrisonburg before the end of the decade. The Stafford County location would give the company stores on all three major Virignia interstate highways.
Stafford County has also lured Amazon to build two logistic centers and the international shipping firm DHL in recent years. Buc-ee’s has about 60 stores, with the most in Texas. It also has stores in Florida, South Carolina, Alabama, Georgia, and Kentucky.
The coming of Buc-ees has proved contentious in the halls of the Stafford County Government. Since we reported that Buc-ees was considering opening a new store in Stafford, the county’s economic development director, Kyle Alwine, resigned at the end of 2023.
Sources tell Potomac Local News that pressure from locally elected officials and Laura Sellers, whom Glenn Youngkin appointed to the Commonwealth Transportation Board, and a former county supervisor, all oppose Buc-ees, and were a factor in Alwine’s resignation.
Alwine declined to comment on why he left, saying only in an interview with Potomac Local. Sellers, who lives near the proposed gas station site, texted to Potomac Local, “[The Commonwealth Transportation Board] has nothing to do with Buc-ees.”
Sellers also sits on the Stafford County Planning Commission, appointed by Garrisonville District Supervisor Pamela Yeung. The Planning Commission will review Buc-ee’s permit application before it reaches the Board of Supervisors.
“If you have a fairly common type of project, and it will bring benefits to the county, and you fight it, it will send a message [to businesses],” said Alwine. “Sometimes it’s not all about [tax revenue]. Sometimes, it’s about sending a message that you’re open for business.”
Alwine was on the job for less than one year. Meanwhile, the county’s top administrator, Randal Vosburg, announced his resignation after 20 months on the job. His last day is April 5, during the height of the county’s FY2025 budget deliberations.
The Stafford Best Buy originally opened in 2008, marking a milestone for the county. Residents had long desired additional retail options closer to home, reducing the necessity of traveling to neighboring areas. However, changing consumer habits driven by the prevalence of online shopping have contributed to the store’s closure.
The closure is seen as a setback for the county, where residents consistently desire more shopping and entertainment destinations. The news comes amidst ongoing anticipation for developments like The Garrison, a 57-acre property acquired by Reston-based developer Pence Group in 2015. The original plans for The Garrison included 500,000 square feet of commercial space, over 400 residential units, a 12-screen Regal Cinemas, new restaurants, and apartment homes.
However, ground has yet to be broken, and the original deadline of spring 2018 has passed. The county has been without a movie theater since crews demolished Regal Cinemas 10 at Aquia Town Center in 2016.
Simultaneously, commercial development is progressing at Embrey Mill on Courthouse Road, featuring a Publix grocery store, several fast-food restaurants, and locally-owned establishments such as Table 9 Kitchen, Crimson Coward, Manhattan Pizza, and Up North Cutz.
In a further sign of changing times, a new Wawa is under construction at Embrey Mill Town Center, and Texas retail giant Buc-ee’s has expressed interest in building a 74,000-square-foot convenience store with 120 gas pumps.
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