A proposed convenience store with gas sales at the corner of U.S. 51 and Frayser Boulevard was rejected by the Land Use Control Board Thursday, Sept. 12, after more than a dozen residents spoke out against the development.

Two other special use permits by nonprofits Porter-Leath and Girls Inc. Memphis for proposed developments in Frayser were unanimously approved by the board as part of its consent agenda Thursday.

Residents voiced opposition to the proposed convenience store because it would be the third gas station at the intersection, the proposed site is near two schools and it would add more traffic congestion.

“We do not need another service station on that corner,” Frayser resident Elaine Austin told the board.

Convenience store proposed for prominent corner in Frayser

Darrell Thomas, one of the six Land Use Control Board members who voted against the proposal, agreed with residents that another gas station would not benefit the area.

“We’re trying to improve these areas, not take away from them with this type of industry,” Thomas said.

The property at the northwest corner of U.S. 51 and Frayser Boulevard is currently zoned for residential use and has a house on the site. The applicant, Rose Wakefield, would remove two billboards currently at the property, according to the application.

The 2.8-acre proposed convenience store would be 6,974 square feet with 36 parking spaces.

If the board had approved the proposal, it would have gone to a vote before the Memphis City Council, which must ultimately approve or reject the project.

Michael Fahy, who is representing Wakefield, said he’ll have to speak with the applicant before deciding what’s next for the proposed convenience store.

Fahy said there was no opposition to the convenience store at a public meeting on Aug. 29 and was “blindsided” by the residents’ concerns Thursday.

“Up until today, this was the first time we had heard of opposition,” he said.

In other business, the board gave approval for Porter-Leath to move forward with plans to build a child care center at 3060 Baskin St. near Whitney Avenue.

Porter-Leath proposes child care center in Frayser

The proposed 25-acre development would serve up to 248 children from ages six months to 5 years.

The center would operate during normal business hours and be a site for occasional community outreach events in the evenings, according to the application. The child care center would also be across from Whitney Achievement Elementary School.

Across the street from the Porter-Leath development, Girls Inc. Memphis was given the nod to expand its site by 8 acres to build a $4.5 million community garden and learning center at 1179 and 1199 Dellwood Ave.

The expanded Girls Inc. site will feature a new center for girls ages 5 to 18, expanded farming operations for its youth farm, and administrative offices. The facility will be named in honor of former Girls Inc. Memphis CEO Patricia Howard, who was with the organization for 50 years and died earlier this year.

Other notable requests approved by the board Thursday include a 103-space parking lot at Crosstown Concourse and 15-lot subdivision at 27 W. Carolina Ave. in South Main.

Crosstown Concourse owners want to develop a parking lot on a vacant 1.5-acre lot north of the building to better meet parking demand at the $250 million redevelopment. 

The housing development on Carolina near Loflin Yard was approved with several conditions, including that a public alley east of the site be closed and replaced with a grass cover or equivalent alternative, according to the staff report.