Residents of Williamson Run, a neighborhood that lies north of 96th street, are opposed to the proposal of a new gas station that could potentially be built on Tyler Woods, a commercial property southwest of the neighborhood.

A new Butler Hyundai dealership is planned to be built on the property and will begin construction sometime in May, according to homeowner Jeff Burget.  He said Williamson Run residents are not against the construction of this dealership, but they’re against the creation of a gas station or any other 24-hour business in the lot.

“It’s a safety concern and crime concern (for the neighborhood) with a gas station or any 24-hour business (being built),” Mr. Burget said.

Homeowners are also concerned with the increase of traffic that will come with a new gas station, especially since many younger children live in the neighborhood, according to resident and sophomore Sydney Burget.

The construction of a gas station also has the potential to lower property values of houses in the neighborhood, according to real estate agent Sylvia Nagy.

However, she said if the gas station is more than half a mile away from the neighborhood, the property values should stay the same.

“People don’t want to be near commercial areas,” Nagy said.  “You want a good buffer.”

Nagy said in her opinion, Williamson Run does have a good buffer of woods between its houses and the Tyler Woods property.

“I don’t think it really hurts their value as much as they think,” she said.

Sydney said she is also concerned with the wildlife that lives in the woods behind her neighborhood. If the gas station or any other business is built, a section of the woods would be torn down and would displace the animals that live in them.

According to Mr. Burget, the neighborhood board has taken action to try to work with the city and the developer to address its concerns about the new construction property.

“(We have) just voiced our opinion and our willingness to work with the developer to try to encourage them to put the right kind of business in there and not a fast food (restaurant) or a gas station or something like that,” Mr. Burget said. “We’ve been really active with the city council and all that to work through the processes on what they’re ultimately going to build.”