Casey’s store planned for county-owned land in Port

A Casey’s General Store — the second in the area — is expected to the built on land Ozaukee County owns at the intersection of Grand Avenue and Highway LL in Port Washington.

The gas stations and convenience stores chain received permission from the Village of Fredonia to build a general store at the corner of Highland and Martin drives earlier this year. 

That store is expected to open in fall.

Casey’s has a contract to purchase about six acres of the former ramp land at the corner of highways 33 and LL from Ozaukee County, said Lauren Downing, project manager with ARC Design Resources, which is designing the store for Casey’s.

However, plans for the Port Washington store, which were recommended for approval by the Design Review Board Tuesday, could hit a snag because Casey’s would share access from Highway 33 with Eernisse Funeral Home, board members were told.

That’s because the state granted a temporary access to Eernisse Funeral Home when Highway 33 was reconstructed in 2011, but said it would close that driveway and the corresponding break in the median if future development on the ramp land brought in too much traffic, board member Marc Eernisse, owner of the funeral home, said.

“They will yank the access and make us close the median,” he said.

Downing said she has contacted the DOT in an attempt to determine its position on the store.

Typically the state considers traffic that passes by a store — which she said would likely be the bulk of Casey’s customers — differently than motorists heading to a destination, she said.

Downing said she did not have traffic projections for Casey’s with her at the meeting.

“It’s generally not anticipated to be an issue,” she noted.

Although Casey’s would also have an access off Highway LL, Public Works Director Rob Vanden Noven, chairman of the board, noted that the Highway 33 access was likely to be the main entrance.

If the state closes the median at the entrance, allowing only westbound traffic to access the store, “I’m assuming you would have to rethink the location,” Vanden Noven said.

“That’s pretty accurate,” Downing replied.

Casey’s, which is known for its fresh bakery, sandwiches and pizzas, has proposed constructing a roughly 4,286-square-foot red brick building with a hip roof. The building would have stone pillars in front and a car wash in back. Six gas pumps with a total of 12 filling stations would be in front of the building.

Design Review Board member Melissa Didier asked if Casey’s would consider splitting the canopy into halves to break up the facade, saying it would help with the aesthetics of the building.

“It’s a long horizontal expanse,” she said.

The company could then extend a walkway to the building from the street into the break, Didier said, providing a convenient way for pedestrians to access the building.

Ald. John Sigwart said the building proposed for Port “is one of the best looking” Casey’s he’s seen.

The building, which would be open from 5 a.m. to 11 p.m., would take up about half the ramp land, Downing said, with a detention pond behind the structure.

Downing said Casey’s hopes to purchase the property by the end of August and begin construction in fall. It will take three to four months to complete the building.

“A lot hinges on the state,” she cautioned.

The site plan and a conditional use permit for the convenience store and gas station will be considered by the Plan Commission when it meets at 6 p.m. Thursday, June 21.