Planning Commission approves Dollar General Market site plan on Highway 38 despite resident safety and traffic concerns

The Ward Planning Commission voted to approve a site plan for a 10,640 square‑foot Dollar General Market on Highway 38 after a public hearing in which multiple residents raised traffic, safety and neighborhood‑character concerns.

Cherl Emman, a resident of the Oakland Grove subdivision, told the commission residents were not given posted notice of the proposal and said the driveway appears to put ingress and egress directly onto Highway 38. "Dollar Generals are pretty known to open up get dirty get messy attract people that we really don't want coming through our neighborhood," Emman said, urging the commission and council to consider potential impacts.

Chelsea Kennedy of Bryson Drive said she opposed the store on economic and safety grounds and cited what she described as a regional safety statistic: "nearly 50 people have died and 127 have been injured in Dollar General Stores between 2014 and 2023," a point she used to argue the store format can become a crime magnet.

Marcus mcnees of Bartlett Architecture, the project architect, described the proposal as a smaller Dollar General Market format with about 35 parking spaces, expanded freezer and food areas compared with a typical store and truck access routed to the side so delivery vehicles would not back onto the highway. McNees said the project design shows a rear privacy fence along the side adjacent to the residential lots.

Commissioners asked detailed questions about parking dimensions, whether the site has only a single entrance and exit onto Highway 38, and whether a second access from the rear would be possible (the architect said a rear access would require construction of another road). Several commissioners and residents pointed to high vehicle speeds on the stretch of Highway 38 and urged the city to evaluate safety for children who walk to a bus stop on Old Highway 38.

Mayor Gason reminded the commission that the parcel had been rezoned to C2 on Nov. 13, 2023, by a 4–1 vote, and noted that commercially zoned parcels that meet code can be developed for business uses. Staff told the commission that city staff and the applicant had met and worked through difficulties and recommended approval of the site plan.

A commissioner moved to approve the site plan; the motion carried on roll call with affirmative votes and the commission approved the plan. The chair told the public the rezoning ordinance and an updated zoning map are forthcoming and invited residents to attend that forthcoming meeting. The chair also announced the next City Council meeting where the site plan will be considered is Aug. 20 at 6:30 p.m., and the Planning Commission's next meeting is Aug. 26 at 6:30 p.m.

The commission's action was limited to the site plan; several residents noted ongoing concerns about traffic, speeding, school‑bus safety and litter that they said would need follow‑up through code enforcement and future council consideration.