Concept plan presented for proposed Ferguson Township Wawa. Residents still have concerns

About a year after Wawa proposed a new location in Ferguson Township, residents still have concerns about the convenience store’s impact on safety after a concept plan was presented Monday night to the township’s planning commission.

PennTerra Engineering Project Manager Tony Fruchtl and Wawa Construction Project Manager Mike Spiegel presented the concept plan for the 5,330-square-foot store located at 169 W. Aaron Drive.

The concept plan includes six fueling stations (fitting a total of 12 vehicles), a canopy over the stations, underground fuel tanks, an air station, a trash corral and a total of 60 parking spots at the site of the former Sutliff Buick GMC Cadillac dealership and Delaney Collision Center. It has yet to be determined whether any of the parking spaces will have electric vehicle charging stations.

“(EV-charging companies) determine whether or not they come here,” Spiegel said. “We try to designate some of the parking spots for future or potential EV-charging, but usually (the EV-charging companies) come in, look to see if any of the stores around us have the charging spots, then they determine if we’ll get them.”

The plan also includes two points of entrance along West Aaron Drive and Bergman Boulevard, and a third point of access is also being considered along North Atherton Street. This third access point would provide both a right and left turn entrance to the gas station along the busy roadway.

However, cars exiting the Wawa would only be able to turn right on North Atherton. A traffic study was conducted for the area surrounding the potential gas station, Fruchtl and Spiegel said.

After the concept plan was presented, the planning commission and public had the chance to offer feedback, with some mentioning concerns about pedestrian safety and possible traffic issues. In September 2023, residents shared similar feedback with Wawa during a community meeting, along with concerns about noise and environmental impacts.

Planning commission alternate Jennifer Eccleston — who is also a driver for CATA — aid she’s primarily concerned about the North Atherton Street entrance and exit to the Wawa, and its proximity to a bus stop nearby.

“When your traffic study was done, did they take into account the bus stop right in front of Rita’s, just past the property line?” Eccleston asked. “My concern is that some conversation may need to take place with CATA regarding that bus stop. I foresee some people exiting right out of the Wawa on Atherton and rear-ending me while I’m driving the bus.”

The potential North Atherton entrance point is also close to the intersections of North Atherton Street with both West Aaron Drive and Vairo Boulevard, Eccleston said, which may create more traffic problems when trying to exit onto the roadway if traffic is already backed up.

Several township residents agreed, and many raised various concerns about traffic and pedestrian safety in Overlook Heights, the neighborhood adjacent to the site of the potential Wawa.

“A lot of times my friends and I will take walks through (Overlook Heights), although most of the time we try and do that during the day because there are no traffic lights or sidewalks through the neighborhood, and it doesn’t feel safe to walk otherwise,” township resident Leah Witzig said. “A large fear of mine with this gas station coming in is that one day one of us are going to get hit. It could be a concern for public safety.”

Township resident Brittney Wineland said she’s worried about her young family and their ability to bike and walk around the gas station safely.

“I have a 13 year old at home who regularly bikes to Walmart and other places to run some errands for me,” Wineland said. “The path that she bikes goes right beside the site of this Wawa, and I’m scared that she could get hit by a vehicle because of the increased traffic, or worse.”

Because only a concept plan was presented to the planning commission, no action was taken. Wawa has not yet submitted a formal land development plan.

A timeline was not provided for the project, although the developers said they plan on attending a future meeting with updated plans for the Wawa, taking into consideration the concerns from the residents and planning commission.

If approved, the Wawa could be the second to open in Centre County, as the county’s first Wawa is set to open along Benner Pike as early as 2025, adjacent to Dunkin’ and across the street from its in-state rival Sheetz, which is currently closed until December due to a complete rebuild.

Wawa did not respond to a request for comment.

The next Ferguson Township Planning Commission meeting will be held at 6 p.m. on Sept. 30.