The road to Buc-ee’s will be paved with Beaver Nuggets.
Actually, it’s paved with asphalt, but it’s the name of part of North Mulroy Road that could change with a Springfield City Council vote Jan 9.
Buc-ee’s store No. 62 is slated to be a 53,000-square-foot store with 100 fuel pumps, quick food service, groceries, souvenirs and other goods for sale on the northeast corner of the I-44 interchange with Mulroy Road. Only part of Mulroy Road could be renamed “Beaver Road,” in homage to Buc-ee’s mascot.
The Beaver Nugget, described by TexasSnax.com as, a “delectable puffy yet crunchy corn nugget with a brown sugar caramel coating.” Whether Springfieldians and their guests will satisfy their nugget cravings by driving up Beaver Road or North Mulroy Road remains to be decided.
Zone 2 City Councilman Abe McGull, whose zone of northeast Springfield will include the Buc-ee’s development, is the bill sponsor for the Beaver Road name change. The City Council heard the first reading of the Beaver Road bill Dec. 12.
“This is a no-brainer for me; this is definitely something I think we should support,” McGull said.
Springfield Mayor Ken McClure noted that a name change for a street is not unprecedented for Springfield. While the original request for “Buc-ee’s Boulevard,” has been turned away, there are several places in Springfield where streets have been renamed with a nod to an important property on the street. The examples include Mustard Way serving a French’s production plant, Bear Boulevard and Drury Lane serving college campuses and Nature Center Way leading to the Springfield Nature Center.
“This is not without precedent,” McClure said.
No one spoke against the name change at the Monday night public hearing.
Not just a name, but new traffic ramps and roundies
The Springfield Planning and Zoning Commission voted 4-3 to recommend changing the name of the part of Mulroy Road that sits north of I-44 to Beaver Road on Nov. 17.
At the Planning and Zoning Commission hearing, Stan Beard, director of real estate for Buc-ee’s, said the teardrop-shaped access ramps, which are set up in the same way multi-lane roundabouts are configured in other places, could be confusing for people who aren’t accustomed to driving through them.
“There is a lot going on there, and Buc-ee’s has on a typical day as many as 12,000 cars visiting the store, and three out of four of those cars are not from Springfield, they’re not from Greene County and they quite possibly are not from Missouri,” Beard said.
Beard said a name change would eliminate the chance of having a North Mulroy North and North Mulroy South coming off the interchange. Separating the part of Mulroy Road north of the interstate and giving it a new name, Beard said, would be a navigation aid for drivers who aren’t from Springfield.
Buc-ee’s has a total of $9.2 million in tax incentives from the city of Springfield. First, the Springfield City Council reached a $4.1 million tax increment financing agreement that allows Buc-ee’s to hold half of the revenue generated from Springfield’s existing 1-cent general sales tax and its ¼-cent capital improvement sales tax. Second, a community improvement district sales tax will reimburse the developer for up to $5.1 million worth of work to North Mulroy Road.
Springfield City Utilities footed the $250,000 bill for part of the cost of running utilities under I-44 to the mega gas station and convenience store. Buc-ee’s will be on all five of CU’s services.
Buc-ee’s developers told Springfield city staffers that the store will employ 175 workers. The Buc-ee’s company expects to spend $56 million to build its store and gas pumps in Springfield, with a target date for Beaver Nugget purchases to start in December of 2023.
