After months of construction and a nearly a year’s worth of meetings prior to ground breaking, the new Casey’s General Store on Main Street is complete.

The new location replacing two closed stores on the downtown square and another on Oskaloosa Street is open for regular hours.

Work began immediately after the Pella City Council approved a Planned Unit Development (PUD) agreement with Casey’s, which included additional requirements for the building site, including additional landscaping, limited hours (6 a.m. to 11 p.m.), and required the convenience store corporation to rehabilitate the properties where the three stores once were. The PUD was developed after a series of site plans failed to pass city boards and commissions and were ultimately rejected by the Pella City Council on May 17th, 2016. Casey’s and the property owners then sued the city after the first plans failed, but dropped the suit after the PUD was approved in October 2016.

Numerous neighbors and citizens are upset with the plans, believing the convenience store does not fit with the adjacent neighborhood and that the gas station is a safety risk. Many spoke out against the new property at city meetings for nearly a year. There are many citizens that have expressed support for the new store, citing the need to remove the two on the square.

Earlier this year, Casey’s announced they intend to donate the land at the corner of Washington and Broadway street to Pella Historical Society. Pella Historical plans to use the new property for gardens adjacent to the Scholte House.

Casey’s Corporation has not responded to request for comment.