FAIRFIELD, Ohio — The rejection of a proposed fourth Fairfield Wawa gas station and convenience store in Fairfield aimed to remove the issue from the City Council agenda.

Monday evening’s action was met with applause from some residents near the planned construction site, but there were no further comments from residents or council members.

The motion to remove the Wawa project from the Fairfield City Council agenda, upon recommendation from Law Director Steve Wolterman, also included a note that in addition to the developer’s request to withdraw the project, the board had also received a recommendation from the Planning Commission against the project.

The withdrawal came a month after more than 80 Fairfield residents said they did not want to see the gas station chain at the corner of Pleasant Avenue and John Gray Road – three of which are already slated to be built in the city.

This overwhelming response prompted developer STNL Development to send a letter to the city on July 25 withdrawing the proposed residential zoning change and concept plan application. The Fairfield Planning Commission did not recommend the development at its July 24 meeting.

“While our team believes the proposed development was an opportunity to bring great benefits to the City of Fairfield and the community, the lack of support for the project demonstrates that withdrawing the PUD application is the right action,” wrote Jonathan Wocher of STNL Development. “We appreciate the time and effort of city staff and members of the City Council and Planning Commission on this application.”

The site was chosen because it was “prime real estate,” Wocher said at the Fairfield City Council meeting on July 8. The plan was to buy the 60-acre property, use 11 acres and donate the rest to the city of Fairfield. The $7.5 million development by Wawa would have created 40 jobs.

Three Wawas are planned for Fairfield:

• Ohio 4 and Symmes Road
• Ohio 4 Bypass and Tylersville Road
• Mack Road at Ohio 4

This is part of Wawa’s efforts to serve the Buckeye State with up to 60 stores.
What will happen to John and Paul McGilliard’s property is unknown, as it has been for sale for some time. The land has not been developed in the past due to creeks, elevation changes and utility lines.

Five Wawa locations are planned to open in southwest Ohio in the first half of 2025, with the first planned to open in Deerfield Twp.

Additional Wawa openings in early to mid-2025 include the Fairfield location on Dixie Highway at Symmes Road, the Cincinnati-Dayton Road location in Liberty Twp, Courseview Drive in Mason and Glensprings Drive in Springdale.

This story originally appeared on journal-news.com.