(Posted May 23, 2014)
By Sandi Latimer, Staff Writer
Ed Yates, a West Jefferson property owner who lives near the intersection of U.S. Route 40 and State Route 142, asked village council members May 19 about their views on a possible development near the intersection.
Yates said he was concerned that if a mini grocery store/gasoline station combination were built there, it would take business away from the village.
“I just want to know how the council feels about this,” he said.
Although Yates mentioned a Turkey Hill facility as a possible builder, Mayor Darlene Steele said it is not certain who would be building there.
She said she attended a recent meeting of Madison County’s Planning and Zoning Commission, which handled a proposal for a project on the northeast quadrant of the intersection. Setbacks and traffic patterns were discussed at the meeting, traditional initial steps for any development, she said. The commission’s next meeting is in July.
Councilman Randy Otis said if a Turkey Hill were built at the intersection, it would be a plus for the village.
“It’s a mini-grocery store and would be good for the village, especially the elderly,” he said.
West Jefferson lost a Cardinal grocery store years ago. A couple of years ago, an independent grocery store operated for a short time. Residents drive to London or Columbus for their groceries, a distance of around 10 miles or more, either way.
“In the short time I’ve been here, the number one request I’ve heard is for a grocery store and a drug store,” Metzger said. “This is what people want.”
Yates worries that a gas station at routes 40 and 142 would take away business from the village.
“If people from (the east) get gas there, they would not go into West Jefferson,” he
The site of the former grocery store is being converted to an Advance Auto Parts store, which Steele said has a target opening of June 1.
