BOERNE, Texas – Rumors have been swirling for months, and on Wednesday it was officially announced that Boerne will be getting a Buc-ee's Family Travel Center.
The proposed 53,000 square foot facility could open as early as 2019. The project is dependent on timelines for the Texas Department of Transportation roadway improvement projects already planned for the area off I-10 and Business 87/South Main Street.
The longtime favorite for road trippers in the state of Texas offers dozens of gas pumps for cars and motorcycles only, a mix of food and merchandise and clean restrooms at each location.
"This will be huge in the dividends that it will pay in our community for years and years to come," said Mike Schultz, Mayor of Boerne.
The Boerne Kendall County Economic Development Corporation, city of Boerne and Kendall County Commissioners announced the passage of an incentive plan for the company, founded by Arch "Beaver" Aplin, that includes a one-cent sales tax sharing agreement for 20 years.
"Boerne is ideal for us," Aplin said. "It has the interstate. It has the community. It has the employment base. We need a lot of employees."
The family travel center is expected to provide 170 full-time jobs, $25 million annually in taxable sales, $180,000 annually in school tax and $40 million total private capital investment, according to a news release.
Not everyone supports the addition of a travel center that is so large, it will include about 90 gas pumps and four pad sites for additional restaurants and retail businesses.
Brenda Thompson moved to Boerne four years ago to get away from the hustle and bustle in Austin.
"I'm shocked. I can't believe there's going to be a Buc-ee's in a town the size of Boerne," Thompson said.
Thompson and others in a Facebook group called "Boerne Area Informed Citizens" said they don't like the growth in what used to be a small town.
Schultz has also heard and seen some of the opposition.
"There's a bumper sticker on a couple of cars that I've seen on Main Street that says, 'Boerne: Gone forever,'"
Schultz said. "For some, yes, Boerne may be gone forever. For the majority, though, there is not only the old Boerne here, but there is the new Boerne here and we've put them together to form what we have."
Schultz takes pride in the city's ability to preserve its historic downtown, maintain green spaces, have an excellent school system and provide citizens with a trail system.
The Boerne Kendall County EDC has been working for more than a year on the proposal to bring Buc-ee's to the community located northwest of San Antonio.