photo by: Chad Lawhorn/Journal-World photo

Two buildings in the Holiday Plaza shopping center are scheduled to be torn down if plans for a new Kwik Shop convenience store are approved for the site.

Kwik Shop is the latest convenience store chain to decide to expand its Lawrence presence, but its plan is poised to dislocate several longtime businesses on south Iowa Street in the process.

The parent company for Kwik Shop — EG America — has filed plans at City Hall to build a Kwik Shop convenience store and fueling station, along with a separate car wash, at the northwest corner of 25th and Iowa streets.

The plans call for two aged retail buildings to be demolished to make way for the convenience store project. If you are having a hard time picturing the location, it is the shopping center that houses Paisano’s Ristorante, the taco shop and Mexican grocery store La Estrella, The Wine Cellar liquor store and several other businesses.

The couple of businesses that I checked in with on Wednesday afternoon weren’t very familiar with the deal, and as such, didn’t have anything to share about what the future held for their businesses.

“No idea,” said Steven Berger, who has owned The Wine Cellar liquor store for 19 years.

photo by: Chad Lawhorn/Journal-World photo

A Kwik Shop convenience store would be built on the site of this building and one other near 25th and Iowa streets, if plans are approved by Lawrence City Hall. Construction likely would not begin until 2021.

A general manager at Paisano’s said he also hadn’t heard the news. People might be particularly interested in what happens to that business, as it is one of the few Italian restaurants in Lawrence and is a longtime special occasion restaurant too. (Think of all the marinara sauce that’s been dripped on prom tuxes there.) I’ve got a message into the owner of Paisano’s, so I’ll let you know if I hear any news on future plans.

Businesses may have some time to figure out their move. What I’ve heard in certain real estate circles is that the deal isn’t scheduled close until after the first of the year, and it is contingent upon the Kwik Shop development getting necessary City Hall approvals.

Paisanos Ristorante

There are about a dozen businesses between the two buildings, including a Weight Watchers center, hair salons, spas, a tanning shop, a financial adviser office and others. Lest you be confused, the two buildings are back-to-back and kind of look like one. Those are the two scheduled to be demolished. The project will not impact the buildings further to the north, which house Biggs BBQ, the new gun range, Raising Cane’s chicken and a few other businesses. Two small buildings just west of the buildings scheduled to be torn down also will remain.

As for the convenience store, it looks like it will be a big Kwik Shop. Plans call for a nearly 8,300-square-foot building. I don’t know the size of all the Kwik Shop buildings in town (only the exact location of their doughnut cases), but past notes from a previous article show the Kwik Shop at 19th and Massachusetts is about 2,900 square feet. So, picture a store that is about three times larger than that one. Or, for further reference, the Casey’s store on Sixth Street is just under 5,000 square feet. Again, based on past notes. (Really, I don’t go in with a tape measure, although the breakfast pizza there does require frequent remeasuring of my waistline.)

This also will be the first Kwik Shop built in Lawrence by the company’s new owners. The Kroger Company — the parent company of Dillons — had owned Kwik Shop for years. Now the British-based EG Group, through its American subsidiary, owns the chain. We’ll see whether it has a much different design for its new properties.

Plans call for five fuel pumps, with a capacity of being able to fuel 10 vehicles at a time. The plans indicate the location will sell both gasoline and diesel fuel. In addition to the large convenience store, the site will include a 2,600-square-foot building that will house a car wash. It looks like the drive-thru type, although I can’t tell from the plans whether it will be a tunnel version or something else.

The current owners of the shopping center didn’t have any details to share or information about how they were working with existing businesses. Susan Hatfield, a representative for Holiday Lawrence LLC, said her group’s contract with the buyer prohibited them from discussing the deal.

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photo by: Chad Lawhorn/Journal-World photo

Employees on Aug. 12, 2020 continue to do final pieces of work on a new Casey’s General Store that is under construction just west of 31st and Iowa streets.

Plans for new gasoline stations in Lawrence are coming on faster than a convenience store burrito. Now might be a good time to review.

Casey’s appears poised to soon open its second store in Lawrence. Work looks nearly complete on the approximately 5,700-square-foot store at 3111 S. Nieder Road, near Target. That location will have pumps to fuel 16 vehicles. Casey’s also has filed plans for a third store that would be in far west Lawrence at the northwest corner of Bob Billings Parkway and Langston Way. That is about a block east of the South Lawrence Trafficway and Bob Billings interchange. The company also has filed plans for a new store in Eudora and is in the process of planning for one in Baldwin City, we have reported.

3111 Nieder Rd, Lawrence, KS 66047

QuikTrip will be next in line. We reported back in January 2019 that QuikTrip had filed plans for a second Lawrence store, but work didn’t soon commence. However, if you have driven by Ninth and Iowa streets in recent weeks, it is clear the project is full steam ahead. Construction crews are on site burying fuel tanks and doing other site work. The location combines the two former Zarco fueling locations that were on the east side of Iowa Street at the Ninth Street intersection.

photo by: Chad Lawhorn/Journal-World photo

Construction crews work on a new QuikTrip convenience store near Ninth and Iowa streets on Aug. 12, 2020.