Committee advances citywide limits on new gas stations; exceptions for large grocery stores and EV charging expansion allowed

The Land Use, Transportation and Infrastructure Committee on Tuesday advanced two companion text amendments to the Denver Zoning Code that would restrict where new retail gas stations (automobile fueling stations) may locate in the City and County of Denver.

Community Planning and Development staff described the proposal as a targeted use limitation designed to preserve land along transit corridors for walkable, mixed‑use and housing‑oriented development. Under the proposed language, new retail gas stations would be prohibited in three circumstances: inside a quarter‑mile buffer from rail transit stations; inside a quarter‑mile buffer from an existing retail gas station; and within 300 feet of a protected district (low‑intensity residential zone districts). The proposal exempts non‑public fueling facilities (for example, fleet fueling) and allows an exception where a fueling station is developed concurrently with a large format retail use in a structure of…