12.73 Acres At the I-95 Ramp

I-95 and Routes 207 / 301 (Rogers Clark Boulevard)

Carmel Church / Ruther Glen

Caroline County, Virginia

I-95 Exit # 104

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Potential for STRONG VISIBILITY

Look closely at the satellite photo and you will see about one (1) acre of the Pilot Convenience Center included - that one acre is subject to a ground lease to Pilot which presently pays about $24,000 per year; there are rate increases in the lease.  The property is sold subject to that lease, and its benefits.

NEW  VDOT Access for the area:

The Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT), in response to truck traffic backing up, stacking, to make turns into or out of several truck stops is moving forward with reconfiguring the access presently found at the first traffic light.

•   The first traffic light at Ruther Glen Road will be removed.  Traffic will not be permitted a right turn into Pilot nor a left turn into Petro.
• A new traffic light will be installed about half a mile to the north and a loop road created to intersect with Ruther Glen Road.
• Impact on the Subject 12.7 acres:
  • Traffic will see the Subject 12 acres with its strong presence at the exit ramp
  • Traffic will then be able to access the Subject 12 acres before it can get to the Pilot Center.
  • The 12.7 acres will have a CORNER location at the intersection of Rt. 715 and 652 and the new Loop Road.

Virginia Department of Transportation ("VDOT")

At times, traffic from I-95 north bound onto Rt. 207 causes back-ups on Rt. 207/301.  Traffic congestion at the intersection of Ruther Glen Road, where to the south is PILOT Travel Plaza and to the north is PETRO and Mr. Fuel, is at the epicenter of this congestion.  VDOT has proposed a new traffic pattern and creation of a "loop road".  A new signalized intersection would be created further north on Rt. 207, with right turn in traffic being closed to Ruther Glen Road and left turn traffic closed at that intersection as well and traffic movement being made at the new intersection with the loop road, which would then tie back into Ruther Glen Road at the intersection of Patterson and Ruther Glen Road, across from the Subject 12.7 acres.  This information is provided as a courtesy and is NOT guaranteed in terms of accuracy or scope.  You are directed to the Bowling Green office of VDOT for specific information and clarifications:   804.633.5091.

Please NOTE:  It might be possible to add another parcel of about 1.97 acres (the house and open area at the left hand corner of the aerial, fronting the exit ramp) for a total of 14.67, of which 1 acres is a ground lease to Pilot (about $24k per year).

Asking $2,500,000 for the 12.7 acres, including one acre ground lease to Pilot.

Caroline County Tax Map 82-A-104

Address:  24004 Ruther Glen Road

NOTE:  an farm house (vacant) is on the property.  The property is sold "as is, where is".

NOTE:  VDOT has issued a "Take" for about 3/4 acre of the subject tract along Ruther Glen Road, and this sale is subject to that Take.

 Double click to enlarge or print; At left, Caroline County Tax Map

The one acre is zoned B-1, commercial.  Balance of the property is zoned RP, which is much like an agricultural district. The master plan for this area prescribes commercial and/or industrial uses. 

Above, details from the Caroline County planning document for the Carmel Church area, 2006.

Caroline County Planning and Zoning Office: 804.633.4303;  Caroline

Caroline County web site:  http://www.co.caroline.va.us/

 

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PUBLIC  UTILITIES

Below, is correspondence from Caroline County Department of Utilities.  Mr. Art Grifin, can be reached using the contact information on the cover sheet.  Overall, it has been reported that there is a 12" water line and 8" sewer in proximity to the intersection of Ruther Glen Road and Rt. 207.  Please direct all inquiries about public water and sewer to Caroline County.

Public Utilities - Caroline County
233 West Broaddus Avenue,
P.O. Box 424    
Bowling Green, Virginia 22427
(804) 633-4390 office
(804) 633-1190 fax

Below, schematics from Caroline County Dept. Utilities

 

Below, view down Rogers Clark Blvd. (Rt. 207 / 301), towards I-95.

Below, view to across Ruther Glen Road, from the Subject 12 acres.

Below, a news article from the FREE LANCE STAR   (http://fredericksburg.com)  newspaper, the best regional daily paper in the Commonwealth of Virginia:

NOWHERE TO STOP - Drivers have mandated rests, but where?  Lack of truck stops a driving concern

February 4, 2007 12:51 am

By PAMELA GOULD

Joanne Jones says the Days Inn she manages hasn't suffered from the closing of Servicetown Truck Plaza nearly two years ago.

Truckers still stay overnight and are happy to have a spot to park.

"Because of the size of our truck parking, we still get a good number of them," the Days Inn-North general manager said last week.

The fact is, truckers are desperate for places to stop along the East Coast to meet their federally mandated 10-hour sleep breaks in each 24-hour cycle.

"For many, it's just a nearly impossible task every night," said Todd Spencer, executive vice president of the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association. He said the problem has gotten worse over the past decade.

Servicetown closed on April 27, 2005, and with it went 207 overnight spaces. The truck stop was located on roughly 17 acres off U.S. 17 near Interstate 95 in the Falmouth area of southern Stafford County. Target Corp. bought the site and is expected to open a store there in October.

Meanwhile, truckers find themselves with few options along the I-95 corridor.

Four truck stops sit about 30 miles south of Fredericksburg at Carmel Church, but their parking spots--numbering roughly 300--fill quickly, managers said.

The next closest option to the north is a truck rest area at the weigh station near Dumfries in Prince William County, but it, too, offers few spaces.

The problem of truckers parking illegally along the interstate is so rampant that Virginia State Police could make a full-time job out of writing up the infractions, Sgt. J.A. Galbraith said.

She said the closing of Servicetown exacerbated the problem.

Last year, 2.9 million trucks passed through the north- and southbound weigh stations near Dumfries, according to Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles spokesman Bill Foy.

He said the Dumfries sites are the busiest along the I-95 corridor and one of the top three in the state. The other two sit along I-81.

"We need more truck stops. I know that. Everyone knows that," Galbraith said. "I just don't know what the answer is."

Managers at the Carmel Church truck stops said they haven't seen a significant increase in business since Servicetown's closing.

And while the Days Inn in southern Stafford hasn't suffered and the nearby Blue Beacon Truck Wash hasn't been hurt, at least one business closed its doors as a result of the truck stop property's sale.

Fredericksburg Truck Center, once located behind Servicetown, closed last summer.

Scott Nall, owner of ABC Truck and Tire Repair in Stafford, bought some of the garage's equipment and vehicles, took on many of its customers and now uses its phone number.

Nall operated out of Lorton for 20 years before relocating his primary shop to Stafford in September.

He admitted the changes that hurt Fredericksburg Truck Center helped him.

Payne Trucking, based in south Stafford, has seen an increase in costs as a result of Servicetown's closure, according to operations manager Wilson Bradley.

Now, to make sure their truck loads adhere to legal limits, they must travel south about 30 miles to use a scale before heading for their destinations. Before they used the scale at Servicetown.

That increased travel has meant increased fuel costs and lost time for them.

"We must go south to go back north again," Bradley said.

Below, is a hot link to the original article with photos:

http://www.fredericksburg.com/News/FLS/2007/022007/02042007/255083

(double click to access news article)