Commission approves Midwest Petroleum variance to fill county stream buffer for Festus station expansion

Jefferson County Planning and Zoning Commissioners approved a variance (VR25010) that will allow Midwest Petroleum to place fill and regrade land inside a county-identified stream buffer at 11845 Highway CC, on the northwest corner of Highway CC and U.S. 67 near Festus. The motion passed by roll call, 4 yes, 2 no and 1 abstain.

Petitioners told the commission the 3.87-acre site is bisected by a stream buffer that, as mapped by county staff, removes roughly one‑third of the usable area. Attorney Evan Sullivan, representing Midwest Petroleum, said the expansion would replace an existing three‑pump station with a convenience store, add a diesel canopy for trucking customers and close an on‑site sewer lagoon to connect the store to public sewer.

The variance package included a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers jurisdictional determination and a watershed delineation. Sullivan said the Corps concluded the affected channel and lagoon are "non‑jurisdictional" for federal waters of the U.S., and the petitioner provided a letter indicating no additional Corps permit was required. Petitioners also said they would close the existing lagoon and tie the new building into public sanitary sewer under Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and sewer district approvals.

County stormwater staff advised caution. Michael Cook, Jefferson County stormwater manager, summarized the local requirements and the role of county stream buffers: "The stream buffers is our water quality protection," he said, and noted that the county enforces stream‑buffer protections under the Unified Development Order and its MS4 obligations.

Commission discussion ranged from technical questions about grading and detention to concerns about whether owners understood site constraints before acquiring the property. Petitioners acknowledged substantial site grading — up to roughly 30–35 feet of fill in places and a roughly 56‑foot total elevation change across the parcel — and said they would work with the county engineer and stormwater staff on final designs and best management practices, including a detention basin intended to replace the existing dry channel.

Commissioner debate split over strict code enforcement versus the practical impact of the proposed detention design. Supporters said the plan replaces an existing lagoon that can overflow into the mapped channel and that the work would connect the site to public sewer, improving public health risk from lagoon overflows. Opponents cited prior rezoning discussions and argued the owners purchased the property with knowledge of the buffer.

Motion and vote: Commissioner Tuggle moved to approve VR25010; Commissioner Husky seconded. The roll call produced four yes votes, two no votes and one abstention; the chair announced VR25010 approved 4–2–1. The commission recorded no specific written conditions on the face of the motion in the hearing transcript, though petitioners repeatedly requested and commissioners discussed approval "subject to" county engineer and stormwater review.

What happens next: The planning and zoning commission’s decision will be forwarded to the Jefferson County Council for final action; petitioners and county staff told the commission additional local, state or utility approvals (DNR, sewer district, county engineer) remain required before on‑site work begins.

Ending: Commissioners and petitioners agreed to continue technical coordination with county engineering and stormwater staff; the record shows petitioners offered to work with the county engineer on final detention and grading details and to implement DNR’s lagoon closure requirements.