TRUCK STOP EXPECTED TO BE READY IN JULY
OROVILLE >> A new truck stop is coming to the city of Oroville on the corner of Feather River Boulevard and Oro Dam Boulevard East in Oroville.
The completion of the project is scheduled for July and should bring about 20 new retail-type jobs to the city, Oroville Mayor Chuck Reynolds and City Administrator Bill LaGrone said Monday.
The gas station will be owned and run by Maverik, whose website states that it owns “more than 350 locations across 11 western states, making it the largest independent fuel marketer in the Intermountain West.”
Maverik serves food, including sandwiches, pizzas, sandwiches and coffee and the Oroville location will be the first for the corporation in California. Its nearest location to Butte County is in Reno.
“We’re happy that major chains are looking at us now and wanting to build in Oroville,” Reynolds said. “When you have major chains that are interested in your town they’ve done all the studies. They see where the growth is happening, they see where the best place to invest is and they picked us, and we’re happy for that.”
LaGrone said that Maverik solicited Oroville about the possibility of building the location after the primary thorough
fare through Oroville was changed from Highway 99 to Highway 70. Reynolds said that around 40,000 cars a day drive through Oroville on Highway 70, so the truck stop is in a strong central location.
The Highway 99 route provided an excessive amount of stop signs for semitrailer drivers, in addition to a surge in deaths that were occurring on Highway 99 when it was changed to four lanes, LaGrone said. LaGrone said Caltrans saw people excessively speeding and passing in unsafe areas, pushing local legislators to find a long term solution.
With Maverik looking to build its first California location, the new primary route along Highway 70 for truckers going through Oroville was ideal.
LaGrone said that good progress has been made and a 120-day timeline seemed on schedule as of Monday. He said underground tanks have been put into the ground already, that underfloor plumbing has been installed and that the actual building should be, “coming out of the ground here before too long.”
In a Jan. 19 Oroville City Council meeting councilors approved a new sign code, entitled No. 1849, after a public hearing to amend the city’s sign ordinance was held. The maximum height of signs within a quarter mile of Highway 70 was increased among other changes, which Reynolds said became necessary with the addition of the truck stop.