Agenda - 02-16-2021; 8-a - Minutes

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24 1 do not even get benefits. He said he is also troubled by criticism of Buc-ee's being an out of 2 state company. He said the County will never reach its economic development goals if all 3 development must be NC based. He said the other large issue he has heard from opponents is 4 that while Phase 2 developments are attractive, they are far off and ambiguous. He asked if it is 5 possible to be more specific about phase 2 at this point. 6 Beth Trahos said the Developer is willing to discuss all elements of the project, but noted 7 that customers are looking for easy availability of gas. She said customers go into the store, 8 and get sucked in, leaving the car at the pump. She said the quantity of pumping stations are 9 necessary to accommodate the ease of people getting in and out of the center. 10 Stan Beard said discussion is always an option. He said the scale is what makes Buc- 11 ee's successful. He said at peak times of usage, all fueling positions are full, and the scale is 12 large, because there are a lot of visitors. He said any reduction in scale does not get rid of the 13 concerns being raised by the public, and it does not matter if there are 5 tanks or 6 tanks. He 14 said phase two will succeed because of Buc-ee's success. He said part of a successful Buc- 15 ee's operation is its large scale. He said he is open to discussing all issues, and hopes the 16 BOCC will allow the Applicant time to consider all items that come up tonight. 17 Commissioner Dorosin said he feels there is a difference in the amount of problems, if 18 there is less fuel stored. He said the common theme throughout the concerns is scale. 19 Beth Trahos said Buc-ee's is a lot smaller than what could be built under current zoning 20 conditions. She said Buc-ee's is 425,000 square feet, which is much smaller than 2 million 21 square feet of distribution center. 22 Commissioner Fowler asked if there is a reason why the water usage estimates have 23 changed from 20% to 17% to 15%. 24 Stan Beard said these numbers were based on bad information, and better information 25 has been received. He said every single number has been combed through, in order to get the 26 most accurate number possible. He apologized for fluctuations, and said data and numbers 27 moves. He said nothing has moved in a material way. 28 Kelsey Hall said removing the car wash did decrease the numbers. 29 Commissioner Fowler said Buc-ee's has had no reportable gas spills, but asked if the 30 number of unreportable has spills could be identified. 31 Jason Harris said there has never been a reportable release from a fuel center, and 32 anything that gets out is reportable. He said every 30 days evidence shows that no releases 33 have happened. 34 Commissioner Fowler asked if there have been surface spills. 35 Jason Harris said he cannot lie, and there are spills. He said there are customer 36 incidents, and there are mitigation responses. He said spills happen, and Buc-ee's does its 37 best to control these and has a high level of maintenance. 38 Commissioner Fowler asked if the number of storage tanks could be reduced from 6, as 39 the spots are often used for parking for those wanting to go into the store, as opposed to buying 40 gas. 41 Jason Harris said the system has to be designed to meet peak demand. 42 Commissioner Fowler asked if there is a reason why people cannot pull up to the store 43 to park, before shopping inside. 44 Jason Harris said Buc-ee's does provide that opportunity, but it does not seem to 45 happen. 46 Commissioner Fowler asked if there are parking spots available. 47 Stan Beard said the parking area excludes the space at the pumps, and the spots are 48 ample. 49 Commissioner Fowlerasked if the EV charging stations will be located near the gas 50 pumps. 51 Stan Beard said they will be on the backside of the property, next to the pond.