Leggett Defends Costco Gas Station

Montgomery County Executive Isiah Leggett is siding with Costco in a zoning debate over whether the discount store should be permitted to place a gas station at Westfield Wheaton.

In a memo last week to county councilmembers, Leggett said that he opposes Zoning Text Amendment 12-07, which would restrict where "mega" gas stations could be built in the county. If the ZTA passes the County Council, Costco would not be permitted to build its proposed gas station.

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The ZTA would prohibit gas stations that dispense more than 3.6 million gallons from sites within 1,000 feet of "any public or private school, or any park, playground, or hospital, or other public use, or any use categorized as a cultural, entertainment and recreation use.”

Leggett specifically mentions the proposed Costco gas station as the "only gas station impacted by ZTA 12-07," adding his voice to for unfairly targeting one specific business.

"I am concerned that this sequence of events may send a message to the retail market that the county is an uncertain place to do business," Leggett wrote in the memo.

Check it out: Wheaton Patch has created a page where you can see all of our Costco gas station coverage in reverse chronological order.