29-01-2025
Wawa projects progressing in Dickson City, Carbondale Twp.
Projects to build Wawas in Dickson City and Carbondale Twp. are navigating the planning process this month, with construction potentially starting this year in at least one location.
As the popular Southern Pennsylvania-based gas station and convenience store chain looks to establish itself in Northeast Pennsylvania, representatives for the Midvalley and Upvalley projects attended planning commission meetings this month in Dickson City and Carbondale Twp. Wawa is currently looking to open at least three locations in Lackawanna County: at Meredith and Main streets in Carbondale Twp., across the street from an existing Sheetz; off Cold Spring Road on Bell Mountain in Dickson City; and at Moosic Street and Meadow Avenue in South Scranton. Outside of Lackawanna County, Wawa also opened a location in December on Route 309 in Wilkes-Barre Twp., with other Luzerne County locations planned for Route 309 in Dallas Twp. and Route 315 in Plains Twp., which is also across the street from a rival Sheetz.
Last week, officials from 2024 Meredith Carbondale LLC, which is developing a Wawa in Carbondale Twp., attended the township's planning commission meeting to discuss their project, said township engineer and planning Chairman Louis Norella. On Tuesday, Wawa representatives attended Dickson City's planning commission meeting, said Vice Chairman Robert Hall, who is also the council vice president.
An engineer with 2024 Meredith Carbondale gave planning commission members and township supervisors an overview of the project during last week's meeting, which was the first time the township met with the firm since they submitted their plans, Norella said. The developer asked for several waivers from the township's subdivision and land development ordinance, Norella said, explaining the waivers are for minor procedural items like the scale of a map in their plans. The planning commission recommended that township supervisors approve the waivers, he said.
The plans for the Wawa mirror the Sheetz on the opposite side of Meredith Street and will include the addition of a traffic signal around the intersection of Main and Orchard streets, Norella said.
The site of a proposed Wawa is seen at the bottom of Meredith Street at the Scranton Carbondale Highway adjacent to a Sheetz gas station in Carbondale Twp. on Thursday, Oct. 3, 2024. (TIMES-TRIBUNE FILE)
Throughout the next month, Norella expects to work with the developer regarding comments from the township on the submission to ensure it meets the township's requirements, like asking to view floor plans to ensure there is enough parking for the just over 6,000-square-foot facility.
The goal is to resolve all of the comments in the next month, and if not, within the next two months in order to recommend the project to the board of supervisors for approval, Norella said.
The developer is also working to obtain permits from the state, including a highway occupancy permit from the Department of Transportation and a National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit, or NPDES permit, from the Department of Environmental Protection, he said.
He estimates they will receive the necessary permits by the fall.
'Permits just take time,' Norella said.
The township does not have a timeline for construction, though Norella does not expect them to 'get it approved and let it sit there.'
'I think when they get their permits in place, they're going to move,' he said. 'It didn't sound like there were any other hurdles.'
In Dickson City, the planning commission discussed plans to subdivide land along Cold Spring Road into three parcels, one of which will be the Wawa, Hall said.
Construction equipment is seen on the site where a Walmart store once stood on Cold Spring Road in Dickson City near Wegman's on Wednesday, Aug. 28, 2024. (TIMES-TRIBUNE FILE)
The goal is to complete the subdivision by March, he said. Once that's complete, the land development process will begin, which is when Dickson City will review the complete plans for the Wawa, including its utilities and infrastructure, Hall said. Although it depends on the developer, the process takes three months on average, he said. When that's done, 'it's all on them,' he said.
Wawa wants to break ground this year, Hall said.
'We're excited to have (Wawa),' Hall said. 'It increases our tax base and is just another option for our residents.'
