RaceTrac is eyeing a new state: South Carolina. The Atlanta-based convenience-store chain has proposed two locations in the capital city of Columbia.
The retailer put proposals before the city’s Board of Zoning Appeals on Jan. 5 for a location at the corner of Fountain Lake and Garners Ferry roads and another at Shop Road and Pineview Drive.
“For years, South Carolina has been attractive to RaceTrac,” Communications Manager Jeanine Jones told CSP Daily News. “South Carolina is experiencing an influx of new residents and businesses that provide a foundation for continued growth. RaceTrac believes the state’s diverse population—along with the growth in commuting and mobile workplaces—is a natural fit for RaceTrac.”
- RaceTrac Petroleum is No. 15 on CSP’s 2022 Top 202 ranking of U.S. convenience-store chains by company-owned store count.
RaceTrac owns and operates more than 560 c-stores in Alabama, Georgia, Florida, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Texas and Tennessee. The company also has more than 200 RaceWay-branded gas stations in 11 states operated by franchisees. There are already 12 RaceWay stores in South Carolina.
As for construction and opening dates of the Columbia stores, nothing is set yet as the company remains in the planning and permitting phase, Jones said.
The Garners Ferry site received some resistance from Columbia’s Board of Zoning Appeals, The State reported. The only member who voted against the proposal wondered if the heavily commercial area already had too many gas stations and c-stores. This location would include an 8,000-square-foot c-store and just under a dozen gas pumps, diesel and regular, said the report. The Shop Road location went through the initial approval process quickly, the newspaper said, and would also consist of a c-store with diesel and regular pumps.
RaceTrac added that as with all locations, South Carolina customers can expect a clean, well-lit parking lot, competitively priced fuel and a wide selection of on-the-go food and beverage options at its new stores.