Zone change would accommodate rebuild of Stop-N-Go on Poplar

CASPER, Wyo. — Council heard no comments opposing a proposed zone change that would allow Homax Oil Sales to raze and rebuild the Stop-N-Go gas station on the corner of 519 S. Poplar St. and 921 W. Midwest Ave.

The gas station has been there for 30 years, according to the company’s representative Jessica Homer, who spoke on the first reading of the ordinance reclassifying the three lots from Old Yellowstone District specifications to C-2 (General Business).

The store was grandfathered in when the city adopted the Old Yellowstone District zoning standard for the area, in 2008, according to the city memo. Those standards favor buildings oriented toward the needs of pedestrians and prohibit a new store. The general business zone change would allow it to be rebuilt.

Homer explained that new store would be bigger, more modern, and in keeping with the aesthetic favored in the downtown area.

City Manager Carter Napier said that several lots along West Collins Drive have been rezoned back to general business since the OYD uniform zoning code was adopted in 2008. City memos note that early plans for the now-underway Poplar Street reconstruction included widening the right-of-way, installing a landscaped median and constructing wide sidewalks with a pedestrian focus, but those features were not part of the final plan.

The zone change will have to go through two more readings to take effect.

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