When Newbury Township residents first learned Dollar General Corporation planned a second variety store in the township, there was some pushback, said Zoning Inspector John Boksansky.
When Newbury Township residents first learned Dollar General Corporation planned a second variety store in the township, there was some pushback, said Zoning Inspector John Boksansky.
Located at 9939 Kinsman Road, the new store will be less than six miles from the Dollar General at Kinsman and Ravenna roads.
Residents complained at the board of zoning appeals hearing in March, but there is nothing the township could do, Boksansky said.
“We couldn’t say no because it meets the zoning code,” he said in a recent interview. “The company wants to be here.”
The BZA approved the minor variance, which will permit a smaller parking lot than the code requires. Boksansky said for the size of the building – 10,640 square feet – 64 spaces are required, but the board approved a variance for 35 spaces.
The 8-acre parcel with a house and garage at the corner of Kinsman and Sperry roads will be developed by the Zaremba Group of Lakewood beginning this month, he said.
The variety store will sit back from Kinsman Road more than 150 feet, with parking and access off Kinsman. The original plan was to have access off Sperry, but residents were concerned about traffic, particularly delivery trucks, so the design was changed, Boksansky said.
The Geauga County Soil and Water Conservation District signed off on the plan to place a stormwater retention basin to the east of the building with some green space around the site, leaving the rest of the property in its natural state as a buffer for Sperry residents, he said.
“They are going to keep the wetland intact. That’s kind of a plus,” Boksansky said.
Residents have complained the township doesn’t have a proper grocery store, he said, adding major grocery companies don’t feel the community has a big enough population to support one.
“We don’t have enough roofs to satisfy the demographics,” Boksansky said, adding a second Dollar General may be the only option.
“It’s going to be a nice-looking store — nicer than the one up the street,” he said.
According to the Dollar General website, the company was founded in 1939 and its corporate headquarters are in Goodlettesville, Tenn.
As of March, there were 18,774 Dollar General stores in the U.S. and Mexico.
SUBMITTED
A Dollar General store is planned for the southeast corner of the intersection of Kinsman and Sperry roads in Newbury Township. Development is expected to begin this month.
