New doughnut shop planned in Fairfield

Renovation plans at a Shell gas station at the corner of Ohio 4 and Crescentville Road in Fairfield include a new Dunkin’ Donuts.

Owners of the building at 7504 Dixie Highway plan to invest just under $2 million in a new convenient store that includes the doughnut store with a drive-through window.

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The upgrades would also add about 15 new jobs, according to Tom Tepe, the attorney for the station’s owner, GOC RealCO LLC.

First, the city needs the property to be rezoned from industrial to business, even though it has had a commercial business operating on it for years, according to Fairfield Planning Manager Erin Donovan.

“As the Route 4 corridor has been developed through the years, the properties that were zoned industrial have changed to commercial,” she said. “However, some of the parcels have retained some of their original industrial zoning classification even though commercial uses occupy them like this one in particular.

While the station has “for many years and is currently legally non-conforming,” property owners have been encouraged to rezone their parcels “more to protect the integrity of Route 4 of being our commercial corridor.”

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Tepe said the Shell-branded gas station’s convenient store “is tired” and “needs help,” which is why his client intends to “make a significant re-investment in the community” in redeveloping the station.

Whether or not the building will be remodeled or razed and built from the ground up is uncertain, Tepe said.

“I don’t know if (the owner) is that far along,” he said. “(The owner) was hoping to get a zone change first and go from there.”

Planning commission will consider the proposal at its March 8 meeting and City Council will hold second and third readings at its March 13 and 27 meetings, respectively. A vote would be taken at the March 27 meeting.

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