Buc-ee’s begins site work in Mebane, major travel center planned for I-40 85

Buc-ee’s started clearing and preparing the site for its Mebane travel center on November 18, 2025, marking the retailer’s first confirmed location in North Carolina as part of its East Coast expansion. Contractors have been leveling and grading the property along I 40 85, excavating soil and installing erosion and silt controls as required for early stage construction. City permitting and building plan reviews remain active steps before vertical construction can move forward.

Public reporting, including the Triangle Business Journal, indicates the proposed building will be approximately 74,000 square feet, include about 120 gas pumps and roughly 600 parking spaces. Those dimensions would make the location one of the largest single site travel centers in the region and require significant traffic handling capacity at a major interstate interchange. The same reporting estimated employment at more than 200 people and projected a May 2027 opening, although that timeline depends on final permits and plan approvals.

The project has clear economic implications for Alamance County. Direct construction spending and later retail and fueling operations will add jobs and taxable activity to the local economy. A facility of this size typically generates substantial sales tax revenue through fuel and convenience retail sales, and payroll taxes from the workforce. For residents seeking employment the more than 200 positions represent a meaningful influx of opportunities, while the county will need to assess infrastructure and service demands tied to increased traffic and visitors.

At the same time the project has drawn critics who raise environmental concerns and questions about wage levels. Installing erosion and silt controls at the outset signals municipal attention to stormwater management, but community advocates have highlighted the longer term impacts of a large fueling operation on runoff, emissions and land use. Concerns about pay standards for new retail employees have also been voiced as part of broader debates over the cost and quality of growth.

From a policy perspective the project underscores a growing tension for local officials between economic development and regulatory oversight. City permitting and plan review processes will determine whether mitigation measures for traffic, stormwater and site design meet community standards. The timeline to a projected May 2027 opening hinges on those reviews and any conditions attached to approvals.

For Alamance County residents the Buc-ee’s site work signals a major commercial change on a key interstate corridor. The immediate effects will be visible as earth moving continues, while the larger questions about environmental impact, traffic planning and local labor conditions will play out during permitting and construction in the months ahead.