New Gas Station/Restaurant Approved In Farmington

FARMINGTON, CT — A vacant and blighted eyesore off Route 6 in Farmington will be transformed into a place to get gas and, perhaps, a fast meal or two.

The Farmington Plan and Zoning Commission Monday unanimously approved a special permit/site plan for a developer to build a new gas station/convenience store/quick-service restaurant at 342 Colt Highway (Route 6).

The applicant — listed as CPD Properties and 342 Colt Highway LLC — will transform the vacant garage/service station into a new place to get fuel and food.

Applicant representative and Farmington attorney Christian Hoheb lead the presentation, introducing applicant engineers and representatives on Monday, July 8.

"Throughout the process, we've communicated with town staff and we've actually had a virtual meeting as recently as last Wednesday to tie up some loose ends and discuss any areas of concern," Hoheb said.

Applicant consultant Heather Monticup of Greenman-Pedersen, Inc., presented a traffic impact study Monday that assumed a doughnut/coffee shop.

She said, however, that a tenant or, even, a type of eatery has not been finalized yet and the coffee/doughnut shop model was used for "conservative" traffic pattern analysis.

Meanwhile, a public hearing before the PZC vote showed significant support for the application, with a total of six residents speaking in favor of the plan, either in-person or online Monday.

The project calls for demolishing the old service station building on the site and for a complete overhaul of the property.

Consultant and applicant representative Chris Tymula, also of Greenman-Pedersen, Inc., released multiple details Monday about the project. Among them:

• A new 5,400-square-foot convenience store and quick-service restaurant building will be constructed.

• A retail fuel canopy with five fuel islands and 10 fueling locations with associated paved driveways and parking will also be constructed.

• Two underground storage tanks will be located beneath the pavement northwest of the fueling canopy.

• The new development would be accessed by driveways along Fienemann Road and Colt Highway.

The approved application comes after a similar application for the site was withdrawn from the PZC's docket in January 2023.

That application, by the same developer, sought to build a gas station/convenience store/bank branch at the site, along with an office building.

Farmington PZC Chairman Scott Halstead thanked the public for coming out and offering helpful input to the commission on the application.

"It's very rare, I think, in speaking for all of the commissioners, that we get this much public feedback that's actually helpful and positive. So I appreciate all of the community members that came out today," Halstead said.

For the minutes of the July 8 Farmington Plan and Zoning Commission meeting, click on this link.

From May 22: 'Vacant Farmington Gas Station Development Resurrected'