Braddock Gas Station To Convert Auto Repair Into Convenience Store

SPRINGFIELD, VA — Owners of the Ravensworth Shell gas station on Braddock Road want to replace the repair part of the shop with a convenience store, according to an application filed with the Fairfax County Planning Commission.

This site contains a 2,600-square-foot building housing four vehicle service bays, an office and storage space, an exterior vehicle lift, and six fuel pumps with 12 fueling positions under a canopy.

The applicant, Capital Services Inc., intends to keep the existing fuel pumps and canopy, replace the four-bay vehicle service area with a convenience store, and add a small second floor office. The convenience store would have two entrances, one on the north and the other on the south side of the building. Both the fuel pumps and convenience store would operate 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

The gas station is located in Ravensworth Shopping Center on Braddock Road, just west of the Intestate-495 interchange. The current building, at the corner of Braddock Road and Port Royal Road, was built in 1967 and renovated in 1984.

Capital Services Inc. said it wants to make the changes in part because customers now expect that a gas station will have an associated convenience store. Also, there is less need for auto service because other facilities in the area provide service and inspections. Service has become more complicated because vehicles have become increasingly computerized, the applicant added.

Capital Services Inc. plans to provide additional information on its proposal at a June 21 meeting of the Braddock District Land Use and Environment Committee. A Fairfax County Planning Commission hearing on this application is scheduled for June 22 at 7:30 p.m.

Information on how to testify can be found on the Fairfax County Planning Commission website.