Lakewood Planning Commission denies Kwik Trip special-use permit for 675 Kipling Street

The Lakewood Planning Commission denied a special-use permit request from Kwik Trip for a fueling station and convenience store at 675 Kipling Street on April 2, 2025, rejecting a motion to approve by a 5–1 vote.

The permit application proposed a redeveloped 2.65-acre site at the northwest corner of Kipling Street and West Sixth Avenue Frontage Road with 16 gasoline pumps plus 17 electric vehicle (EV) chargers — 8 “superchargers” and 9 level-2 chargers — a convenience store with a full-service kitchen and a plaza area. The applicant and its counsel argued the station met the zoning code’s exception to the city’s 1,000-foot spacing rule because “the primary fuel source at the project is electricity, because there are 17 EV stations, charging stalls, and only 16 fuel pumps,” counsel David Foster told commissioners.

The disagreement over how to measure “primary fuel” was central to the hearing. City staff recommended approval, saying the applicant had proposed a configuration in which electric charging would be the primary fuel type under the zoning code and had otherwise met dimensional and design standards. Kara Mueller, senior planner for Lakewood’s development…