A proposed Circle K store on the west end of Warrenton received site plan and conditional use permit approval during the board of aldermen meeting Tuesday, May 19 by a 5-1 vote.

The proposal consists of a 3.34 acre parcel east of Warrenton Boulevard and north and west of Veterans Memorial Parkway just south of Interstate 70.

The proposal calls for a 7,472-square-foot store and gas station, with 5,200 square feet dedicated to a convenience store and the remainder for an as yet unnamed fast food restaurant. There will be 10 fuel stations for cars and diesel fueling lanes for semi-trucks on the east side of the parcel.

During the discussion on the CUP and site plan, Alderman Christine Wait, who was the lone no vote on the proposal, voiced several times her concerns about trucks backing up on the roundabout to the west of the proposed Circle K property.

Engineer Matt Fogarty with Premier Design Group told Wait that the roundabouts were designed to handle standard semi-trucks. He said that while his firm did not do a traffic study for the proposal, in part because the closure of the Highway 47 overpass over I-70 significantly changed the traffic patterns temporarily, they did do an analysis of the property. He added that the inner red area seen on local roundabouts is specifically designed for truck’s rear tires to track around and over to make navigating a roundabout easier. He added that Circle K is not seeking a truck-stop and that no trucks will be allowed to park overnight at the facility.

Wait continued asking questions regarding truck traffic into the facility, at one point asking whether or not it might be feasible to add a turn lane into the facility for trucks, but Fogarty said that there was no city requirement for a turn lane into the facility. He also noted that there wasn’t enough right of way to add another 12-foot lane for the turning lane. He also discussed difficulties in how long the turning lane should be, noting that creating any kind of turning lane would create additional vehicle stacking issues.

Other issues discussed during the meeting included which restaurant would be in the facility as Alderman Brandon Lang said he didn’t want it to be a restaurant that already exists in Warrenton. Fogarty said that there were four potential companies looking at the site. While he didn’t name the companies, he said that he was specifically aware of two companies that had shown interest and those two were not ones that exist in Warrenton.

Other issues included sign height and light color temperature. Fogarty said that the signs needed to be tall enough to be seen from the interstate as there is a 20-foot change in elevation over the property. He noted that lighting would be at 4,000 kelvin light color temperature, although both Lang and Alderman Josh Chandler asked whether that amount could be lowered to 3,000K.

Ultimately the board voted 5-1 in favor of both the CUP and the site plan. According to city Planning Director Tim Burks, the conditional use permit was to allow the sale of alcohol at the store.