GAHANNA, Ohio (WCMH) — Gas station and convenience store chain Sheetz will not move ahead with its proposed Gahanna location, which had been in the works since mid-2022, the city announced Friday evening via Facebook.

“We (Sheetz) will continue to expand throughout the Columbus region with the goal to be a great employer and good neighbor that is actively involved in every community we serve,” a statement on the City of Gahanna’s Facebook read.

The decision came after the city’s planning commission shot down three design proposals for the build Wednesday, March 8, with members saying they were not in the best interest of the community. Sheetz and its partners had 30 days to appeal that decision.

Gahanna city governmental bodies had gone back and forth over the proposed location since late 2022, and by March, it had drawn the ire of some residents on social media.

The Gahanna Planning Commission initially voted down a conditional use application for the property at a Nov. 2 meeting, a decision that developer Skilken Gold appealed in December.

On Jan. 26, the Gahanna Board of Zoning and Building Appeals reversed that decision and greenlit the construction project of the Sheetz, which would have been located on a plot between Johnstown and Morse roads near Donatos Pizza and High Bank Distillery.

Nearby residents protesting the project voiced concerns of safety — citing FBI statistics about how convenience store and gas stations are high on the list of likely locations for violent crime — and traffic.

Sheetz storefronts have quickly dotted the sides of more central Ohio roadways in the last four years. The chain’s first central Ohio location opened in 2021, and by January 2023, it had opened more than 20 locations.