Orchard Park residents voice concerns over gas station proposal

ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (WIVB) -- Orchard Park residents voiced their concerns on Wednesday about a proposed gas station down the road from Highmark stadium.

At the town's board meeting, board members heard more details about the gas station, but it came with backlash from community members who said it's not prioritizing fans during football season.

Four residents spoke in opposition of the idea. They said if the gas station gets built on Abbott and Big Tree Roads, it will cause tons of traffic issues. This comes after a traffic study commissioned by the group wanting to build the gas station found there would be no issues.

"Traffic will be stopped in all directions. The game day experience will be ruined by the three-hour traffic jams every week," said Gary, a concerned Orchard Park resident. "Why make a bad traffic situation worse?"

"If you have traffic flowing in and out of this convenience store during the height of game day traffic, it is going to be a mess," said Orchard Park resident Bob Fessler. "I would doubt that they would've given approval and said there was no negative impact if they have taken into consideration the game day traffic."

The developer proposing the gas station argued that there's a need for this type of business within the Orchard Park community. He said because it's a convenience store with a take out window, most of the people who stop there will just be passing by, which should not impact traffic.

"It's not typically a destination," said Attorney Sean Hopkins, who is representing the potential developers. "You're driving by there, it's convenient to stop on your way home, on your way to work, during mid-day, and then you leave."

Local businesses spoke to News 4 and said they agree with the concerns the residents have.

Mark Ebeling, the owner of Danny's South, believes traffic is going to be a huge issue, but he is more disappointed to see that these are the priorities of the town board.

"If that's what Orchard Park thinks redevelopment is, that's a joke," Ebeling said. "There should be a hotel. There should be lots of hotels, not lots of them, but a few."

He also said more business is good for everybody and that he would love to see larger establishments like hotels and other restaurants open up in the area.

"The more businesses that are open, the more people come around," Ebeling said. "It's like a lame area right now. When Walmart was down the street, it was beautiful. Now there's no traffic flowing. There will be more traffic flowing if more businesses show up."

The Town of Orchard Park also released its rezoning proposal for areas near Highmark Stadium.

The board was scheduled to vote on July 3 to hold a public hearing on Aug. 7, but the measure was ultimately tabled by board members over a legal concern. They did not provide any further details.

To read the rezoning proposal, click here.