FARMINGTON HILLS (WWJ) -- A group of Farmington Hills residents spoke out Thursday night, pushing back on a proposed Sheetz location say they do not want in their city.
But at the end of the Nov. 21 planning commission meeting, the vote fell on the side of the 24-hour gas station and convenience store.
The issue now goes to the city council, and if approved Sheetz will open a new location at 12 Mile Rd. and Middlebelt, at the site of the old Ginopolis restaurant.
Lloyd Banks, lives in the area, co-founded the community group "Concerned Citizens Against Sheetz."
"Between the fact that they can actually sell liquor up until a certain time, we're concerned about loitering at this place, we're concerned about crime," Banks said.
"If you Google 'Sheetz' in general, there's a lot of crime that takes place at places that are closed after 10 o'clock, which is normally when we shut down in the city of Farmington Hills," Banks said.
Other concerns, Banks said, are noise and traffic.
"That particular area is a very busy intersection, and it backs into three subdivisions," Banks said.
Pennsylvania-based Sheetz is most known among its customers for its specialty drinks and made-to-go food menu.
Currently, there is only one Michigan Sheetz location: on Wick Rd. at Vining in Romulus.
Currently planned Metro Detroit-area Sheetz locations include two in Warren: at 12 Mile and Mound roads, and on Van Dyke Ave. south of 14 Mile Rd.
New upcoming Sheetz locations have also been announced for Eastpointe, Taylor, Chesterfield Township and Ypsilanti.
Back in May, plans for a Sheetz in Madison Heights were scrapped after heated discussion at city council meeting.