Walmart seeks PCD amendment for fueling center and reduced parking; commission schedules public hearing

Walmart Real Estate Business Trust asked the Murfreesboro Planning Commission on Feb. 19 to amend the Kennonsburg Place planned commercial development (PCD) to add a convenience store and fueling center and to reduce the minimum parking requirement for the Walmart supercenter site on Joby Jackson Parkway.

The applicant’s representative described a proposed 1,600‑square‑foot walk‑in convenience store and additional fuel pumps on the northeast corner of the site, and a reduction in the PCD parking ratio from about 4.7 stalls per 1,000 square feet to roughly 0.5 stalls per 1,000 square feet (the applicant noted that mirrors a 1 space per 400 square‑foot metric). Staff said the proposal would remove roughly 86 provided parking stalls in the area where the fuel center would be sited, though a larger theoretical reduction in required spaces could be as many as about 270 based on changed ratios.

Why it matters: The proposed fueling center is adjacent to existing townhome and apartment developments (the Villas of Baskinwood and Chaney Ridge Apartments). Commissioners focused on three issues: (1) whether the fuel center is appropriately sited next to residential units; (2) whether proposed landscape buffering and screening are sufficient; and (3) whether a reduced minimum parking requirement is acceptable.

Commission discussion and applicant response: Staff and the applicant said the PCD already anticipated a fuel facility on a smaller scale in the original approvals; the new proposal increases the convenience‑store footprint and pump count. Gabriel Loth of Carlson Consulting Engineers, representing Walmart, said the location was chosen because parking in that area is heavily used and the site functions like an outparcel.

Commissioners asked about separation standards that apply in straight zones (staff noted CF zoning requires a 200‑ to 250‑foot separation in some cases measured property line to property line, while CH zoning has no separation requirement) and whether a Type C buffer would be an appropriate minimum. Commissioners also requested information on hours of operation, lighting design to avoid spillover into adjacent residential areas, and whether the operator would be Murphy USA or another brand. The applicant confirmed the operator was Murphy USA.

Action: The commission voted to schedule a public hearing on the PCD amendment for March 5. Staff indicated it will return with more detailed buffer, lighting and parking analyses.