Stafford Board of Supervisors chair Deuntay Diggs noted a different sort of diversity among the crowd that packed the county’s government building on Tuesday evening.
“Looking out and seeing people with signs that said ‘yes’ sitting besides people with signs that said ‘no’ and seeing how you treated each other, that was amazing,” said Diggs, “especially considering the national climate.”
Members of the “yes” contingent to which Diggs was referring sported gray baseball jerseys, colorful Hawaiian shirts — and one full-body hooded costume — bearing the trademark Buc-ee’s beaver.
Their counterparts, meanwhile, displayed red “no” stickers across their chests and hoisted signs opposing the gas station chain’s plans to open a roughly 74,000-square foot convenience center in Stafford.
Both had their say over the course of the six-hour public hearing, but ultimately, the yeses won out.
Early Wednesday morning, the supervisors voted 5-2 on three separate motions to approve a Buc-ee’s near Austin Ridge Drive in the county’s Garrisonville District. Pamela Yeung and Vice Chair Maya Guy cast the opposing votes.
Press the Issue
More than 45 speakers addressed the Stafford supervisors about Buc-ee’s, discussing everything from traffic concerns to tax revenue. See what they had to say here (public hearing starts at 2:25:00 mark)
Ignacio Esteban was the first speaker when the public hearing opened. Or, should we say, premiered.
“I have a video for you guys,” Esteban said.
The clip, which opened with ominous music and a close-framed shot of jackbooted ATF agents stomping down a rain-slicked street, served to introduce Esteban’s background in law enforcement.
“I put away people who destroyed communities,” Esteban said in a voiceover, as an ostensible narcotics bust proceeded on screen.
As the film transitioned to a tranquil image of Esteban mowing his lawn, he continued: “I thought my fighting days were behind me… Then the beaver came to town.”
The speakers who followed were less dramatic, perhaps, but no less passionate.
Julia Lewis, who lives in the Falmouth District, acknowledged traffic concerns raised by many Buc-ee’s opponents but said that the company has a track record of mitigating those impacts.
“Is there going to be increased traffic?” Lewis said. “Of course, there’s going to be. Buc-ee’s has enough experience to know how to reroute it.”
Dave Kendall, meanwhile, made the bold claim that he’s probably been to Buc-ee’s more often than anyone in the room.
“I towed an RV to Florida,” Kendall said. “And I can tell you that getting off 95 into any gas station is a nightmare… But when Buc-ee’s came, they had traffic down to a science.”
The board broke for a 10-minute recess every hour on the hour before resuming public comment.
The project has generated outsized public interest since the company first submitted permit applications more than two years ago. In October, the Stafford Planning Commission deferred making a recommendation on the project. Then, in March, the planning commission voted 4-3 to recommend approval of the project, priming Tuesday’s marathon public hearing before the supervisors.
(This story will be updated.)
