Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Land Use topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Planning commission reviews concept plan for proposed Wawa at Stockton Road and Ocean Highway
Summary
The Pocomoke City Planning and Zoning Commission reviewed a concept plan for a 5,915-square-foot Wawa with an eight-dispenser pump canopy, discussed required annexation and regulatory approvals, and heard staff engineers say wetlands and stream relocation approvals are in place pending formal annexation.
The Pocomoke City Planning and Zoning Commission heard a concept presentation for a proposed 5,915-square-foot Wawa convenience store on the southeast corner of Stockton Road and Ocean Highway.
Conor McManus, representing the applicant, described the plan as “a 5,915 square foot Wawa with an eight pump dispenser gas station and a single row access road that would be stubbed for future potential extension,” and said the site includes roughly 50 parking spaces and landscaping and stormwater facilities. He said an existing agricultural ditch/stream on the property would be partially relocated and piped under the access road to discharge at the same outfall.
Why it matters: the parcel is currently in the county and must be annexed into the city before the commission can formally approve conditional uses or variances. Staff told the commission the annexation petition is under review by the city attorney and will go before the mayor and council; once annexed, the city will proceed with more formal site-plan and conditional-use review.
City engineering staff and the project engineer said several technical approvals are already in place. “They meet parking, the height meets, the wetlands disturbance and the stream relocation has been approved by MDE,” Brent Jet of GMBB engineering said, adding that forest conservation approval has been obtained through Worcester County and that the subdivision approval is complete. The team also said the entrance to the site has approval from the State Highway Administration (SHA).
Staff emphasized the city currently lacks jurisdiction over the parcel. “Right now it’s still in the county so it needs to be annexed in. So technically you don't have authority over the site yet,” the staff presenter said when asked to summarize next steps.
Commissioners pressed for operational details. The applicant confirmed the canopy includes eight multi-product, double-sided dispensers (16 fueling positions) and said three 40-by-15-foot spaces at the west side of the lot are intended to accommodate oversized vehicles such as boats and RVs. The team also described a proposed Stockton Road widening for a right-turn lane and minor restriping to improve traffic flow; staff noted the proposed entrance width (about 36 feet) exceeds the city code minimum (30 feet) because of stacking and SHA requirements.
A commissioner recused themself from the next agenda item because of a personal interest in that separate application. No final city approvals were granted at this hearing; the presentation was characterized as a courtesy concept review meant to identify issues and coordinate interagency reviews prior to formal annexation and site-plan hearings.
What happens next: the annexation petition will be reviewed by the city attorney and then placed before the mayor and council for a resolution; the project team expects the annexation and site-plan reviews to proceed in parallel afterward. The transcript does not record a vote on any site-specific approvals.
