Benner Township’s Board of Supervisors on Monday gave final approval to plans for one of four anticipated Wawa locations in Centre County.
The township last year conditionally approved the land development plan for a 6,600-square-foot Wawa store and gas station at the intersection of Benner Pike and Eagle Point, directly across from Sheetz. But the developers still had details such easement and surety agreements to finalize, Tony Fruchtl of project engineer PennTerra said.
With those in place and final approval from the board, Fruchtl said the developers are “looking to move forward” and that “you’ll probably see movement out there before the end of the month.”
Wawa has also been advertising job openings for supervisory positions at the Benner Pike store on its careers website.
A Wawa spokesperson told StateCollege.com on Tuesday morning that it’s “too soon” in the process to provide a timeline for construction or store opening.
According to plans presented to the Centre County Board of Commissioners in 2023, the store will be sited on 1.893 acres in front of Graystone Court Villas and will have 16 gas pumps on eight fueling station islands. Primary access will be from Eagle Point, with a right-out exit directly onto Benner Pike and access through the neighboring Dunkin’ property.
It appears to be in line as the first among Wawa’s expansion plans in Centre County.
At a community partnership event held in September at the Penn Stater Hotel and Conference Center, Wawa officials discussed plans for the four sites the company has under contract in Centre County. In addition to Benner Pike, the company is planning stores at Earlystown Road and Old Fort Road in Potter Township near Centre Hall; East College Avenue and Squirrel Drive in College Township; and North Atherton Street and Aaron Drive in Ferguson Township near State College.
They did not share specific timelines for opening any of the stores, only saying that the initial new stores in the region are expected to open sometime in the next five years.
“That is a tough question to answer. All of my developer partners and real estate folks here are working as hard as they can to get them open, as fast as they can,” John Poplawski, Wawa chief real estate officer, said at the event. “We’re partnering with all the local officials, but things don’t happen overnight. If you’ve ever tried to get a permit to put a deck on your house, it takes time.”
Each new store will be a $7.5 million investment, with 140 contractors per store construction and 35 Wawa employees at each location, according to the Delaware County-based company.
With more than 1,100 current stores in 12 states, Wawa has been undertaking an aggressive westward expansion in Pennsylvania. Locations in nearby Clinton and Mifflin counties are on track to open in 2026.
