HomeMy WebLinkAboutLetter #161 Lou McElwain
Shestak, Joe
From:Lou Mcelwain <lou.mcelwain@att.net>
Sent:Monday, August 3, 2020 6:37 PM
To:Shestak, Joe
Subject:Proposed Village of West Clay Gas Station
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Hello:
I have been a resident of the Village of West Clay since 2001 and am writing as I do NOT support the proposed gas
station for the Village. I understand that the original Village plans included the possibility of a gas station; however, that
was 20+ years ago. Much has changed since that time including the wonderful addition of a branch of the Carmel
library.
I do not support the proposed gas stations for the following reasons:
(1) We have gas stations at Meijer, Get Go/Market District, and 3 located at approximately 106th Street and Michigan
Road. Not all of those had been built when the Village was founded. With the proximity of those stations as well as the
large corporate dollars behind them, it is unlikely that a smaller corporate entity would be competitive on price.
Therefore, the likelihood of this proposed business failing is significant. An example of this would be the attempts to
have a small grocery store in the Village. None of the them has succeeded. It is very difficult to be competitive with
Meijer, Market District, Target, Kroger, etc.
(2) In the event of failure, the financial and environmental burden of removing the underground storage tanks would be
significant. If they were not removed, it would be very difficult to convince any other business to operate from this
location and the property could become an eyesore. We don’t have to look very far to the west (i.e., Zionsville) to see
an example of this.
(3) As electric and hybrid vehicles gain in popularity, the need for gas stations will be reduced. Again this would make it
more challenging for this entity (and others) to succeed.
In summary, while a gas station might have made sense 20+ years ago when the Village was surrounded by farm fields, it
no longer makes economic sense, and the economic viability of the project is not good.
It is my hope that the members of the Carmel Zoning Board will listen to the Village residents, consider the viability of
the proposed project, and turn down the petition.
Thank you for your consideration.
Lou McElwain
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