MONROE, CT — Planning and Zoning Commission members will review an application to build an O’Reilly Auto Parts store at 215 Monroe Turnpike. A hearing will be held in the Council Chambers of Monroe Town Hall this Thursday at 7 p.m.
The 7,453-square-foot O’Reilly Auto Parts store would have 25 parking spaces and a main driveway from Route 111.
Zwally Real Estate LLC, the owner of the property, is petitioning the commission for a zone boundary change from Limited Office Retail (LOR) within a Main Street Design District overlay zone to a Special Design District, and applying for a special exception permit for the site plan.
The approximately 42,298-square-foot property currently has a gravel driveway and a concrete pad among the previously cleared trees, according to the project narrative for the application on file at Monroe Town Hall.
The site would be served by public water, gas and electric, as well as an onsite septic system to be approved by the Monroe Health Department.
Town records show the site was previously served by an existing septic system, Chas Evans, a professional engineer with Bohler Engineering, wrote in the project narrative, adding testing will be done to demonstrate suitability for a septic tank.
The stormwater plan includes a series of roof drains and catch basins, where rainwater would be treated and detained in an underground stormwater infiltration system before being released into the Monroe Turnpike drainage system.
Due to a change in the grade of the property, a retaining wall is proposed along the northwest corner of the site, ranging from two to seven feet in height, Evans said.
The O’Reilly Auto Parts’ site would include an enclosed trash enclosure, a sidewalk for building access and for street frontage along Monroe Turnpike.
All respectful comments with the commenter’s first and last name are welcome.
I am all for bringing in new businesses to Monroe but I am not sure the town needs another Auto Parts store when we already have a NAPA store which is locally owned and an Advanced Auto parts store. Is there really such a demand for auto parts in this area? Bringing in a national chain will absolutely take business from the other two auto parts stores. What good does that do for the town? It’s like adding another nail salon or massage parlor, what’s the purpose?
Town governments don’t decide which businesses win or lose. That’s up to market competition. If NAPA and Advanced Auto are good competitors, then they will survive. Clearly O’Reilly’s analysis is that we are a promising market for them.