Hampton has adopted the first reading for new gas station standards. Four new gas stations are presently looking to build within the city.
Hampton Gas Station Standards
The Hampton city council passed a 90-day moratorium on gas stations in December. This allowed city staff to review the existing standards and recommend changes. The council considered the new standards at their February 11, 2025 meeting.
The new standards include the following:
- No Coin Operated Amusement Machine (COAM) use is permitted at the site of a gas station, including but not limited to Class A and Class B machines.
- No major and/or minor automotive repair service facility is permitted at the site of a gas station.
- No overnight vehicle parking, storage materials, such as tires, auto parts, etc. are permitted at the site of a gas station.
- Outdoor storage is permitted at the site of a gas station located within the C-3 (Heavy Commercial)
district only. - No outdoor placement of propane gas storage racks, ice storage bins, automated teller machines (ATM), soft drinks or similar vending machines are permitted at the site of a gas station.
- Truck terminals that provide retail sales of diesel fuel are regulated as industrial uses and are not permitted in C-2 (General Commercial) or C-3 (Heavy Commercial) districts.
According to city staff, items 2-6 are already in city code. Only item 1, a restriction on COAM machines, is new. The updated standards do not apply to any existing service stations.
Buffer Requirements
In addition, Hampton is proposing a one-mile buffer requirement. This would prohibit a new service station from opening within one mile of an existing gas station. Applications presently under review are not subject to this limitation. McDonough similarly passed a one-mile buffer in January.
There is, however, an exception if a service station is part of a larger retail development. Think grocery stores which also offer a fueling station. The exception allows a service station if the new gas station is on the opposite side of the road from an existing gas station. There can be no gas stations within one mile on the retail development’s side of the road.
The below map illustrates this one-mile buffer. It has the one-mile buffer on existing service stations, shown in green, and proposed gas stations (blue).
The buffer would leave few locations eligible for a gas station within the city. US 19 / 41 south of GA 20, and out Lower Woolsey Road, could support a gas station. A small section of Georgia 20 at the eastern end of the city also falls outside of the buffer. Any service station would still need to obtain commercial zoning for the proposed location.
New Gas Stations
Presently, four new gas stations intend to build in Hampton. They are at the following locations:
- US 19 / 41 at Woolsey Road,
- US 19 / 41 at Revolutionary Drive,
- GA 20 at Hampton-Locust Grove Road, and
- Hampton-Locust Grove Road immediately west of Hampton High School.
The four locations above all appear to have existing commercial zoning, based on the city's presentation. At least one such service station will begin construction shortly. A fifth proposal, located on GA 20 at East Main Street, withdrew its request.
The four new locations would join four existing service stations in Hampton.
Next Steps
The Hampton council passed the first reading of the new gas station standards on February 11. They will consider the second and final reading in March. The council's March meeting is on a different date than usual because of a national conference. The Hampton council will instead meet on Tuesday, March 25, at 6:30 pm.
Featured image shows a map of existing and proposed gas stations in Hampton. Clayton Carte / The Henry Reporter map created with Datawrapper.
