The owner of a property in southwest Ocala is hoping to replace a shuttered lounge and gas station with a new convenience store, gas station, and expanded commercial parking options.
On Monday, December 30, a special use permit to allow for a truck stop/gas station at 9900 SW Highway 200, near the border between Ocala and Dunnellon, will be presented to the Marion County Planning and Zoning Commission.
The request is part of the PZC’s consent agenda, which is enacted with one vote.
According to a county staff report, Andres Mizrahi of Bowman Engineering submitted an application on behalf of his client, Armento Family, LLC, to request a special use permit for temporary heavy vehicle parking in a B-2 zoned convenience store with pumps.
The property in question is comprised of three parcels totaling 7.948 acres in size. It is located within the county’s Secondary Springs Protection Zone and is currently zoned as B-2 (Community Business).
The owner is hoping to allow for parking of heavy vehicles at “temporary truck stop,” with the intent to create a 5,262-square-foot convenience store with 20 light vehicle fueling positions and 3 heavy vehicle diesel fueling positions.
According to the staff report, the permit is required due to the “proposed use of eight heavy vehicle parking spaces for short-term parking” for vehicles on site. In Marion County, this type of use is typically accommodated in B-3, B-4, and B-5 zoning, which is why the applicant is requesting a special use permit in a B-2 zoning.
The staff report notes that, although the Florida Department of Transportation acknowledges a “lack of significant commercial vehicle parking” in that area of Ocala, the location in question is not part of the Strategic Intermodal System, which is the state of Florida’s commerce and freight network as identified by FDOT.
“This location at SR 200 and CR 484 is not designated as part of the SIS network. According to FDOT traffic count data, the overall traffic volumes on SR 200 (17,500 Annual Average Daily Traffic) and CR 484 (8,000 AADT) have been increasing. But the percentage of heavy commercial vehicle traffic on SR 200 during 2023 was 10.7% and CR 484 was 9.8%. Typical freight volume percentages on SIS corridors and other commonly used Principal & Minor Arterial routes in the State of Florida average between 14% and 16%,” reads a statement from the staff report.
The staff report goes on to recommend that the PZC deny the request.
Regardless of the PZC’s recommendation, the special use permit must be presented to the Marion County Board of County Commissioners for final approval during one of the board’s upcoming meetings.
The Marion County Planning and Zoning Commission meets at 5:30 p.m. on Monday, December 30 at the McPherson Governmental Complex in Ocala.