Meijer Buys Vacant Property in Boardman for Gas Station

YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio — Meijer Stores Ltd. is moving forward with a gas station in Boardman after closing on a parcel of property – though it’s not the land it originally wanted.

On Feb. 9, Meijer closed on vacant property at 965 Boardman Canfield Road Lot 2 for a purchase price of $415,000, according to the Mahoning County Auditor website. The previous owner was OHC Energy LLC, which purchased the land for $210,000 in 2007.

The land is less than a mile down U.S. Route 224 from the site of the Meijer store under construction, says Tricia D’Avignon, assistant director of zoning and development for Boardman Township. Last year, township trustees had repeatedly denied Meijer a zoning change to commercial for two parcels at 7104 and 7090 Lockwood Blvd. that make up nearly 2.5 acres.

“I think that they started looking elsewhere for properties that were nearby and already zoned for commercial use,” D’Avignon says.

The new parcel is just shy of an acre and is already zoned commercial, she says. The site once housed a gas station and, according to public records, was owned by Clark Oil & Refining Corp. from 1988 to 1998. Since then, it has sat vacant and was “incredibly tax delinquent,” according to D’Avignon.

The property was sold to Meijer at a sheriff’s sale and had been a nuisance for residents, she says. The township had been receiving complaints about tractor-trailer trucks parking at the site.

“It’s good to see that it’s going to be redeveloped,” she says.

Meijer is developing plans for the gas station, which will be smaller than it originally intended, says Crisman Jones, the company’s real estate manager. Because it’s zoned commercial, however, it won’t require the setbacks and buffers that were needed for the site it originally considered.

Last year, Jones provided testimony at zoning meetings about the proposed gas station on the Lockwood Boulevard properties, during which township officials and residents voiced their opposition. Those opposed to building the gas station there were concerned about traffic safety at the intersection of Tippecanoe and Route 224, as well as “commercial creep” on Lockwood Boulevard.

“We listened to the citizens of the community,” Jones says. “We were fortunate enough to find a location that worked for us.

“We wanted to bring our full amenities to the Boardman market,” he adds.

Construction continues at the site of the store and the company has been working since January to fill upward of 300 positions. The store is on track to open this spring, Jones says.

Pictured at top: The 0.9-acre site at 965 Boardman-Canfield Road is zoned commercial and once housed a gas station. Meijer purchased the property for $415,000.

Copyright 2024 The Business Journal, Youngstown, Ohio.