- Buc-ee’s travel center at I-95 and Indrio Road has finished the county planning process
- St. Lucie County officials report growing developer interest along the Indrio Road corridor
- Northern St. Lucie County, near Fort Pierce
The proposed Buc-ee’s travel center at Interstate 95 and Indrio Road has completed St. Lucie County’s planning review, and the county’s planning director says the project will not return to the board. The company still needs final sign-off from state agencies before construction can start.
Planning and Development Services Director Benjamin Balcer said the county has finished its work on the project. Its building permit and site development permit are close to ready, he said, and the next move belongs to the company.
What Buc-ee’s Still Needs Before Construction
Two state agencies are the remaining hurdles: the Florida Department of Transportation and the Florida Department of Environmental Protection. Balcer said Buc-ee’s is awaiting approvals from both.
The proposed travel center would cover about 76,000 square feet and include roughly 120 fuel pumps. That could make it the largest Buc-ee’s in Florida. Buc-ee’s has previously targeted a 2028 opening. No construction start date has been announced.
Developers Are Looking at the Indrio Road Corridor
Much of the land around the site is still undeveloped, and cattle graze across wide stretches of it. County staff says that is starting to change. Balcer described the area as an untapped resource and said his office is fielding pre-application meetings, concept plan discussions, and formal applications.
He did not credit Buc-ee’s as the direct driver of that interest. He did say a large national company tends to get investors’ attention. County officials also point to recent road and utility improvements that make the corridor more attractive for homes and businesses.
Several projects are proposed or moving through review nearby:
- Club at Indrio Creek, south of Indrio Road, could bring hundreds of homes.
- Indrio Town Center would turn about 85 acres near Indrio Road and Emerson Avenue into a mixed-use site with retail, office, and residential space.
- Indrio Groves, planned near Spanish Lakes Fairways, could add more than 3,000 homes. Discussion of that proposal was tabled over the summer.
Neighbors Question Whether Roads Can Keep Up
The size of Indrio Groves has drawn the most concern. Jeff Bourassa, president of the Spanish Lakes Fairways Homeowners Association, said residents worry about traffic and infrastructure. He pointed to Johnston Road and Koblegard Road as routes that were not built for that volume of growth.
Balcer said the county understands the worry. He noted that the area has long been an agricultural community, and residents fear changes to traffic and their way of life.
Balcer said the corridor will look very different if Buc-ee’s opens and the projects now in the pipeline get built. Whether that happens depends on state approvals, the company’s decision to start work, and the outcome of each development review. Readers who want to follow those reviews can watch St. Lucie County agendas. News from nearby Fort Pierce is also worth following.
