Is Colorado’s second Buc-ee’s back on the table? Entity tied to convenience store purchases land along I-25
Apr 22, 2026, 3:33 PM
Just when we thought a second Colorado Buc-ee’s location was off the table…
A newly formed entity tied to Buc-ee’s has purchased a parcel of land along Interstate 25 in El Paso County for more than $10 million, according to county records, reigniting speculation about a second Colorado location for the Texas-based mega travel center chain.
The warranty deed, filed in early April, shows Monument Ridge West LLC transferred the property to Buc-ee’s EPCO LLC. The parcel, known as Parcel 1, sits near the intersection of Beacon Lite Road and County Line Road — the same site where a Buc-ee’s travel center has been proposed and fiercely debated for more than a year.
Buc-ee’s media coordinator Crissy Gonzales responded to inquiries with a “no comment.”
The land was created through a boundary line adjustment between two unplatted properties owned by Interstate 25 Properties Ltd. and Monument Ridge West LLC. Together, the parcels total about 53.4 acres, roughly 50 miles south of the Denver metro area.
Despite the purchase, no development plans for a Buc-ee’s had been submitted to El Paso County as of Tuesday. El Paso County confirmed to The Denver Post that the county has not received a land-use application for a Buc-ee’s on the property.
The property has been at the center of a contentious battle since 2024, when developers first proposed annexing the land into the small town of Palmer Lake to build a 120-pump gas station, convenience store and travel center. The plan drew fierce opposition from conservationists, who argued it would undermine the adjacent Greenland Ranch open space — a 40,000-acre protected area considered one of the Front Range’s largest.
The fight escalated in September 2025, when Gov. Jared Polis and U.S. Sens. Michael Bennet and John Hickenlooper sent a letter to Buc-ee’s CEO Arch “Beaver” Aplin III urging the company to reconsider the location.
Monument Ridge West withdrew its Palmer Lake annexation application in February 2026.
Now, with Buc-ee’s own LLC holding the deed and well permits in place, the project appears to have shifted from a developer-led annexation effort to a direct Buc-ee’s land play — though the company has offered no public comment on its intentions.
The land is zoned “Commercial Community” under El Paso County’s existing regulations, which could allow development without a municipal annexation.
Colorado’s first Buc-ee’s opened in Johnstown in March 2024 and has become one of the state’s most visited roadside attractions.
