Dollar General has delayed its planned construction of a proposed store ten miles south of Berkeley Springs, West Virginia.
The proposed store has been subject of protests and litigation organized by residents who want to preserve the rural nature of the area.
The proposed Dollar General site is at the corner of US 522 and Oakland Road — across from Cacapon State Park.
In November, Dollar General told reporters that construction would begin in this winter. But yesterday, Dollar General said that construction has been pushed back to the spring.
Michael Hausfeld, a lawyer representing the citizens in the area, has asked for a meeting with Dollar General CEO Todd Vasos to discuss alternative locations for the Dollar General store. Dollar General has refused to meet.
Dollar General opened 950 stores last year and plans to build 1,000 stores this year — about 2.5 stores a day. At that rate, Dollar General will have more stores in the United States than McDonald’s has restaurants by 2018. (Dollar General had over 13,000 stores in the U.S. at last count. McDonald’s has over 14,000 restaurants in the U.S.)
Construction of the new Sheetz store at the corner of US 522 and Rt 13 is proceeding on schedule. The new Sheetz store is scheduled to open May 4. The old Sheetz store at the corner of Rt. 9 and US 522 will close the same day.