PUMPED UP: Horizon West residents say more accessible gas stations are overdue

As rapid growth and expansion continues to rock the Horizon West community, infrastructure development struggles to keep pace.

Part of the developments planned for the area in the near future are three new gas stations: a 7-Eleven along Seidel Road, a 7-Eleven at Flamingo Crossings and a Wawa at Hamlin along Avalon Road. 

“I know there are many eager Horizon West residents who wish there was a convenient gas station opened yesterday, but the process takes time and careful planning,” Orange County District 1 Commissioner Nicole Wilson said. “We engage the neighboring residents whenever possible to make sure they are part of the process. The gas stations are coming, and my job is to make sure when they do, they comply with public safety and environmental regulations and don’t negatively impact our existing residents.”

DEVELOPMENT DETAILS

Although some believe the only gas station available in Horizon West is the Walmart Fuel Station located in Hamlin, the area has a few others scattered throughout the area, including a Mobil off of Reams Road and a 7-Eleven in the Lakeside Village Center.

Megan Adams, a Hamlin resident, dislikes the Walmart gas station for a multitude of reasons. 

“It has a terrible entrance/exit,” she said. “Half the pumps are almost always blocked off. It’s a madhouse. We need a normal, bigger gas station with a better flow for traffic. Honestly, everything doesn’t have to be aesthetically pleasing. Gas stations need to have a practical entrance.”

Kelly Finkelstein, senior public information officer for Orange County, said according to the county’s planning division, staff is familiar with the 7-Eleven in Village F, as well as the recently approved Wawa along Avalon Road in the Horizon West Town Center.

Finkelstein said the only other potential application for a new gas station in Horizon West is a location at the southwest corner of Avalon Road and Flemings Road in Village I. 

However, she said the planning division has no formal applications submitted for review.

Photo by Annabelle Sikes

The gas station closest to completion is the 7-Eleven near the Starbucks located in The Mark on Seidel Road. 

The establishment will feature 16 fuel pumps and a 3,010-square-foot convenience store.

The 7-Eleven located at Flamingo Crossings is still under construction. When completed, the station will feature 12 fuel pumps and a 3,454-square-foot convenience store.

The Wawa planned for Hamlin, located on the southwest corner of Avalon Road and New Independence Parkway, will feature 16 fuel pumps, a large convenience store and a Sweetwater Car Wash built adjacent to the location.

Horizon West resident Ron Baumanis said although adding three more gas stations is welcome, even with those additions, there will not be enough.

“The problem all along is not the need for gas stations, but the fact that gas stations don’t really make a lot of money and only large franchises can afford to build and take a bath on profits for years until they can finally start making some money off the deal,” he said. “Stations aren’t going to open until they get a good sense of where the traffic is and where they might make money. 

“There has also been community opposition to all three proposed gas stations,” Baumanis said. “That ties things up and slows things down. There is also a general misunderstanding of the fees, licensure and general tenets of development. Gas stations will never come before people move in (but rather) always after, when they see where they can make money. And then it takes time to design, license and build. They aren’t utilities; they are privately owned.”

Adam Bates, who has lived in the Horizon West area since 2002, agreed three is not enough. 

“Yes, we need more,” he said. “Really frustrated that it has taken this long to address such a basic need in such a growing area. I am not sure why it has taken this long.”

HAS THE NEED BEEN MET?

Residents living in the Wincey Groves neighborhood in Horizon West opposed the planned development of the Wawa gas station and the Sweetwater Car Wash during a community meeting hosted by Orange County in August.

Horizon West resident Camillo Vitale said although the Wawa in Hamlin is needed, his concern is the location. Traffic in the area can be challenging at times, and without a traffic light to let people cross safely or make a turn across a divided road, he worries about safety. 

Other residents are excited about the possibility of a Wawa in the community, 

“While the gas pumps are nice, I’m most excited about the Wawa, because this will add an option to get fast food items late at night,” Horizon West resident David Fisher said. “As someone who sometimes works late shifts, a lot of the food options are closed throughout Hamlin.”

“(I am) so excited we are finally getting a Wawa,” Horizon West resident Denise Radziwill said. “Been waiting five years. I am a Jersey girl. (It is a) great place for snacks and gas, and Wawa coffee is the absolute best. Just hope it’s big enough. Need a super Wawa and (for it to be) kept clean.”

Although many have varying opinions on the gas stations, one fact is shared among the locals: They are long overdue. 

“The developers should’ve been forced by the town to have these gas stations built before anything else breaks ground,” Horizon West resident Aaron Casey said. “Whatever incentives have to be met to make it happen is on them.”

Nicholas Czerkies, president of the Independence Community Association who has lived in the Horizon West area in some form or fashion for almost 20 years, said the needs of the community have not been met.  

“These gas stations are long overdue, and if there was ever any bureaucracy or other politics involved in delaying additional fueling options, the public should know who was behind it,” he said. “Almost everyone in this area purchased here on the promise of retail and infrastructure that was planned to meet the needs of the community, and those needs have not been met.”