The Topeka City Council remanded a proposed Planned Unit Development for a Maverik convenience store and fueling site at 605 Southwest Fairlawn back to the Planning Commission after prolonged debate about traffic, pedestrian safety near a nearby school and whether the Planning Commission had seen all neighborhood input.

The motion to remand passed with eight yes votes; Councilmembers Valdivia Alcala and Kale voted no. The remand instructs the Planning Commission to take additional public comment and specifically examine character-of-neighborhood concerns, suitability for the requested rezoning, and public-safety questions related to traffic and school crossings.

Dan Warner, Planning Division director, told the governing body that the PUD would enlarge a C-2 commercial tract and rezone an adjacent parcel from C-4 into the PUD for a 6,000-square-foot convenience store with fueling islands and a truck scale, plus an approximately 1.28-acre area reserved for possible multifamily (M-3) use. Warner said the applicant submitted a traffic-impact study in advance and that staff had required a new traffic signal at SW Seventh and Fairlawn, a median extension south of Sixth Street and reconstruction and widening of SW Seventh Street as part of the project's mitigation.

City Attorney Amanda Stanley told the council that because a valid protest petition had been filed, the governing body was acting in a quasi-judicial capacity and must base its decision on the record before it. She summarized the voting thresholds: a vote to adopt the Planning Commission's recommendation requires eight votes, an amendment or other outcomes likewise have defined thresholds under city code and recent case law.

Multiple council members and residents said they had received large numbers of emails and phone calls about the project. Councilwoman Hofer, whose district is adjacent to the site, described the long history of the vacant parcel (the former Ramada) and recent concerns residents raised about traffic near school drop-off and pick-up times. Hofer said she intends to work with Maverik to find alternatives but concluded, “I don't think it fits that neighborhood,” and said she would vote no if the council voted to adopt the rezoning.

Councilman Miller moved to remand the matter to the Planning Commission for further public engagement and for staff to return with recommendations that address the council’s safety and traffic concerns. Councilman Duncan seconded with an addendum asking specific follow-up: clarification of who would pay for widening SW Seventh Street, further study of coordinating the multiple signals on Fairlawn, a re-examination of semi-truck turning movements and right-turn restrictions, and a re-check of the bridge and KDOT timing referenced in the traffic study. The motion passed 8–2.

The Planning Commission will receive the council's instructions and is expected to re-consider the application at its next scheduled meeting; under city and recent case law the protest petition remains effective on return, so final approval would again require an eight-vote supermajority of the council.