Predicted Buc-ee’s-area development coming to fruition

When a 100-pump, 53,000-square-foot Buc-ee’s travel center was proposed for the city of Springfield, officials said development would follow.

Estimates said the store, which opened in December 2023, would attract some 6 million customers per year, with 88% traveling from 20 or more miles away, and would generate taxable revenue of $30 million annually, according to past Springfield Business Journal reporting.

In an interview at the grand opening, Amanda Ohlensehlen, Springfield’s director of Economic Vitality, noted the infrastructure investment by Buc-ee’s extended sewer, water and three-phase power across Interstate 44 and improved roads, opening up about 1,000 acres to development.

Ohlensehlen predicted big changes in the area, and that prediction appears to be coming to fruition.

A measure proposing the annexation of 3-plus acres of private property into the city was given a first reading and public hearing at the May 19 meeting of Springfield City Council. The ordinance describes the location of the two parcels as 3358 N. Mulroy Road (renamed Beaver Road to honor the Buc-ee’s mascot) and 5242 E. Farm Road 104, located just north of the travel center.

The annexation was requested by property owner Thomas Masteller, who plans to petition for rezoning for commercial development from its existing residential use. The intended commercial use is not specified in the annexation request.

The property does not currently have access to water from City Utilities of Springfield, though that can be extended, according to the staff report.

Another development is also in the works near Buc-ee’s.

According to permit requests filed with the city of Springfield, MHC Kenworth plans to open a 70,000-square-foot trucking sales and service facility on 28 acres located at 5400 E. Buc-ee’s Blvd., north of Buc-ee’s and east of the property proposed for annexation. The property is listed by the Greene County assessor’s office as being owned by M-H Property Enterprises LLC.

Andrew Menke, senior planner with the Springfield Department of Planning and Development, confirmed reporting first from the Springfield Daily Citizen by verifying the filing of a commercial building permit and electrical, gas, mechanical, plumbing, land disturbance and sewer connection permits are still open for the project and that the primary applicant is Kimley-Horm & Associates Inc. out of Kansas City. The owner is MHC Kenworth.

Menke said the subdivision component of the project is still in process, but the preliminary plat was approved at the end of 2024.

The site was annexed into the city in August 2023 at the request of the Jerry Tolbert Trust, according to past SBJ reporting.

MHC Kenworth Manager Austin Morris, who is headquartered at an existing dealership at 3301 E. Kearney St., did not respond to requests for comment for this story by press time.