Running on empty: Northern El Paso County residents are miles away

Northern El Paso County residents are privy to some of the area's finest residential communities, boasting large lots, privacy, recreational opportunities and breathtaking panoramas. But don't run low on gas on your way to work or shopping -- it could be a long hike.

The closest gas stations to Cathedral Pines and Flying Horse are miles away, located to the north in Gleneagle or on Baptist Road or to the south at Briargate Boulevard and Chapel Hills Drive.

Real estate broker Jay Carlson of Front Range Commercial said he first became aware of the situation when he lived near Monument. He now represents the developer of a proposed retail and office center on Interquest Parkway near Highway 83. The property's development plan and zoning allow for gas stations and convenience stores.

"Everybody who sees my sign on the property asks, 'Can you get gas and a convenience store up here?' I really understand because I lived up north," he said. "The closest place to buy gas was either the Shell (station) down in Briargate or the new station by the Kings Soopers off Baptist Road. There's nothing off Highway 83."

Mark Useman, a retail broker with Sierra Commercial Real Estate, lives in High Forest Ranch. He's also seen the problem first-hand.

Both brokers said oil companies just aren't ready to commit to the area.

"It's either that we don't have 'critical mass' in population yet, or we're competing with higher-volume locations in Denver," Useman said, adding that gas station sites are determined by strict formulas for drive-by traffic counts, access and the projected number of gallons that will be sold.

So why is there a lack of ConocoPhillips, Shell, Valero or even unbranded mom-and-pop gas stations, not just to the north, but throughout El Paso County? Even more mystifying is the question, "Where have all the gas stations gone?

The heyday of the gas station occurred during the 1940s when more than 241,000 locations dotted the U.S. landscape. By the 1960s that number had dropped to 170,000, and by 2007, industry analysts saw another 30 percent decline, bringing today's total to 120,000.

The U.S. population during that same timeframe has almost doubled to more than 300 million, and U.S. Department of Transit Statistics show that motor vehicle ownership has mushroomed from 74 million during 1960 to more than 243 million last year.

So, while motor vehicle registrations have tripled, the number of gas stations has declined by a third.

Harlan Ochs, president of Acorn Petroleum, a Colorado Springs- based gas and convenience store marketing company, said the economics of selling fuel in today's tight oil environment have left station owners in a squeeze, forcing many out of business.

"It's difficult for consumers to understand, but just because there's $3-a-gallon gas doesn't mean the retailer is making more," he said.

Ochs said that it's tougher to make money as the price of gas goes up, which he blames on consumer pressure and the increased used of credit cards.

"If you are making five to 10 cents a gallon when gas is $3-a- gallon, and you're paying 2 to 3 percent in fees to the credit card company, that's six cents out of your pocket," he said. "That's why so many gas stations now include a convenience store where you really make your money."

Ochs agrees that there are fewer fueling spots available to motorists, pointing out that only one new station was built during the last year, near Fort Carson, and several more have closed.

But that might be about to change. Oil companies are looking to the fast-growing Powers Boulevard corridor and east to Falcon, where existing gas stations are reportedly cashing in on a captive audience.

Bill Day, a spokesman for Valero Petroleum Co. in San Antonio said the company had not increased its corporate stores in Colorado in a while, but was considering expanding "branded wholesale" opportunities for third party owners, a stronger growth area.

"We currently operate 20 to 25 branded Diamond Shamrock stations," he said. "Right now, retail gasoline sales is a difficult business to be in."

"Right now there are only about six stations along Powers at Palmer Park, Galley Road, Barnes, North Carefree and Stetson Hills," he said. "And demand is growing."

When it comes to attracting gas stations to newly developing areas like the Interquest-Highway 83 corridor, Ochs said that developers could potentially be asked to subsidize or negotiate an attractive price with oil companies.

"Ten or 15 years ago, a developer would get calls from three or four oil companies, all competing for a good location," he said. "They had larger capital budgets for retail expansion than the independents and would buy $2 million of property, then invest $1 million in improvements."

That's changed.

"They (third party or branded wholesalers) can't afford to pay today's land prices," Gray said. "They also know that a convenience store and gas station can be a traffic generator for a new retail center, so they require the developer to provide the land to make a deal."

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