{"id":2102,"date":"2026-06-09T22:05:42","date_gmt":"2026-06-09T22:05:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/durhammovinghub.com\/?p=2102"},"modified":"2026-06-09T22:05:42","modified_gmt":"2026-06-09T22:05:42","slug":"buc-ees-wanted-its-1st-nc-store-to-be-in-orange-county-how-did-it-end-up-in-alamance","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/durhammovinghub.com\/?p=2102","title":{"rendered":"Buc-ee\u2019s wanted its 1st NC store to be in Orange County. How did it end up in Alamance?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Mebane wasn\u2019t the first choice when Buc-ee\u2019s came to North Carolina looking for a place to build its first massive travel center and gas station in the state.<\/p>\n

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The Texas-based chain famous for Beaver Nuggets and spotless bathrooms will break ground at 10 a.m. Wednesday just off Exit 152 on Interstates 85\/40 in Mebane.<\/a><\/p>\n

The 74,000-square-foot store could open by the end of 2027, with 120 gas pumps, 650 parking spots and 24 EV charging sites. It could create at least 200 full-time jobs, and bring in roughly $1.8 million in annual sales tax revenues and approximately $120,300 in annual property tax revenues for the city and county.<\/p>\n

While Alamance County wasn\u2019t the company\u2019s first choice, Buc-ee\u2019s regrouped after hitting bumps in neighboring Orange County, where residents and leaders spurned the company\u2019s advances.<\/p>\n

Here are five things to know about that failed bid:<\/p>\n

Orange County commissioners told Buc-ee\u2019s a 64,000-square-foot travel center with 120 gas pumps proposed between Exit 160 and Exit 161 in Efland was too large, even after the company eliminated a 185-foot-long car wash.<\/p>\n

The project \u2014 dubbed the \u201cEfland Station\u201d \u2014 also could have included a 120-room hotel and over 148,000 square feet of manufacturing, office, retail and restaurant space. The $40 million project was expected to generate up to $1 million in local property and sales tax revenues in the first phase.<\/p>\n

The Orange County commissioners voted 5-2 to demand a significant reduction in scale<\/a> along with fewer pumps and a smaller 24-foot sign instead of the proposed 80-foot one.<\/p>\n

Two streams on the Efland site sat in a protected watershed draining into Sevenmile Creek, and the Center for Biological Diversity and Eno River Association raised alarms about storing 240,000 gallons of fuel underground<\/a> near critical wildlife habitat.<\/p>\n

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The Orange County Commission for the Environment recommended denial, noting the project conflicted with the county\u2019s Paris Climate Accord pledge to cut carbon emissions 80% and move to 100% renewable energy by 2050, as detailed in the original development plans.<\/a><\/p>\n

The site would have required limited road improvements, because of the existing on- and off-ramps. In Alamance County, the N.C. Department of Transportation already has a $38.7 million project in progress to add lanes, stoplights and a wider bridge over the interstate. Buc-ee\u2019s is covering $10 million of the cost.<\/p>\n

Residents formed A Voice for Efland & Orange, gathered thousands of petition signatures and packed public hearings, with one resident calling Buc-ee\u2019s a \u201cgarish, outlandish, oversize Texas gas station\u201d<\/a> that violated the county\u2019s core values.<\/p>\n

Buc-ee\u2019s withdrew its application in February 2021, with real estate director Stan Beard telling the Planning Department that \u201cOrange County is just not the right fit for Buc-ee\u2019s\u201c<\/a> \u2014 and the 100-acre site is now slated for an 886,240-square-foot industrial park.<\/p>\n

The opposition to the travel center hasn\u2019t gone away.<\/p>\n

Mebane\u2019s city council unanimously approved the Alamance County project and rezoning in January 2024, with the store landing on 32 acres at Exit 152 off Interstates 85\/40, about eight miles west of the failed Orange County site<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Dozens of Orange County residents have criticized the decision, joined by the Indigenous-led 7 Directions of Service and the North Carolina Environmental Justice Network. The groups released a report citing concerns about 23,000 gallons of daily water use, air pollution and impacts on historic Native American trading paths used by the Catawba, Occaneechi and Waxhaw peoples.<\/p>\n

The summary points above were compiled with the help of AI tools and edited by journalists. The source reporting referenced above was written and edited entirely by journalists.<\/i><\/p>\n

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This story was originally published June 9, 2026 at 12:20 PM.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Buc-ee's travel center breaks ground in Mebane June 10 after Orange County rejected the mega gas station. Here are 5 reasons the Efland NC deal fell apart.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1498,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2102","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-read-todays-edition"],"yoast_head":"\nBuc-ee\u2019s wanted its 1st NC store to be in Orange County. 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