The second developer has requested rezoning of the three-acre property at Technology Boulevard and Artz Road, according to documents submitted to the Huber Heights planning commission. The plan would accommodate a 4,500-square-foot building with 12 semi-truck parking spaces, and 843 square feet designated for truck repair purposes. Many of the properties near this site are manufacturing facilities, with a reliance on trucking services.
The land owner, Said Agaliyev, represented by surveying company Haley-Dusa, “feels there is a need for support services for over-the-road truckers who have maximized their legal driving time and must rest,” preliminary documents state.
The proposed building may include restrooms and showers for truckers to use, but the details of the facility have not been finalized, Interim City Planner Aaron Sorrell said during a September planning commission meeting.
“The comprehensive plan indicates that this area is both a gateway (into the city) and ... a growth area where we want to see businesses grow, thrive and be developed,” Sorrell said, noting that the plans largely comply with those standards.
Sorrell said the current plans provide less detail in other areas, including landscaping and parking, which he said is “not uncommon” at this stage. He did note there are concerns about how the facility may benefit the surrounding businesses and community.
“The applicant wants to provide services to (truck) drivers, but what those services are seems to be fluid and not clearly defined at this moment,” Sorrell said, adding he had concerns that “this basically becomes a trailer drop lot with no value-added services for the drivers or those surrounding businesses.”
Planning commission staff tabled the issue, allowing Agaliyev time to refine the project and return with a more detailed plan at the Oct. 25 meeting. But that planning commission meeting was canceled due to a lack of business. A request for comment from Haley-Dusa engineering went unanswered as of Friday afternoon, and Agaliyev could not be reached.
This project is the second such facility proposed recently for the area near the busy interchange. Just 300 yards away, an approximately 35-acre piece of land is the proposed site of a larger fueling station, truck stop and repair facility.
The applicant in this case, Amarjit Takhar of Takhar Oil LLC, submitted a plan to the city that includes construction of two buildings. One 6,720-square-foot building will house a convenience store and restaurant, and the second 6,642-square-foot building will contain a diesel truck repair facility, according to the plan documents.
Though construction on this project was originally estimated to begin this summer, the site remained empty earlier this month. Takhar was unable to be reached for comment on the status of these plans. According to the city, the project is continuing as planned, with details about road infrastructure surrounding the site currently being hashed out. No updated timeline is available.
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