The Philadelphia-based convenience store chain has an expansive vision for North Carolina, according to officials with the company. On Tuesday, Wawa hosted the first of a three-stop Community Partnership Tour in Wilmington to share more details about its plans to open 90 stores across the state, the first of which is set for Kill Devil Hills.

About 10-15 of those stores will be in the Wilmington area, they said. At least three are planned for Brunswick County, one in Hampstead and six in Wilmington. They hope to break ground on the first of them this year and open two stores next year.

In April, it looked like plans for one of those, at 5400 Oleander Drive, had fallen through as the developer withdrew the property's rezoning application for the site that was previously home Hops Supply Co. And posts to social media hinted at community push back against the chain.

But that location is still on the list of upcoming Wawa locations they’re planning to open. And at the conference room at Aloft Wilmington at Coastline Center downtown, most of the attendees of the event were self-described Wawa superfans.

“It’s not a gas station. That’s what I keep telling people,” said Stefanie Adams, a Wawa fan and former member of the New Hanover County Board of Education.

It was something that speakers at the event repeated. Sure, Wawa sells gas, but it isn’t a gas station. It also isn’t a coffee shop, or a restaurant but Wawa said it serves 1 million cold beverages, 500,000 cups of hot coffee and 300,000 hoagies every day.

They also have ATMs with no transaction fees, more EV chargers than any other retail chain and are 40% employee owned, said Brian Schaller, president.

He added that this kind of hurdle isn’t uncommon – and they aren’t giving up on the Oleander location.

“We are working through the process. Most municipalities want to make sure we’re doing it the right way,” he said. “A Wawa drives traffic intensity, and we understand that.”

They’re planning to make the necessary adjustments.

“We try to tell them our story and tell them we’ll do the right things,” he said. “You have a great community landscape in Wilmington... You’re a hidden gem that’s been found.”

Telling their story was a part of the process on Tuesday. Fans took photos of Wawa’s mascot, Wally Goose, could try out the self-ordering kiosks they use for made-to-order foods, sampled coffee, smoothies and some of Wawa’s packaged food. The company also announced two non-profit partners for the Wilmington area, including the Food Bank of Central & Eastern North Carolina and Special Olympics North Carolina.

Wawa is a privately held, family and associate-owned chain that now has more than 1,050 locations operating seven states and Washington, D.C. Next, Wawa plans to visit Jacksonville (which has five sites under contract) and Fayetteville.

Here’s a look at planned Wawa locations in the Wilmington area.

• Ocean Highway and Frontage Road N.W., Shallotte

• Ocean Highway and Lanvale Road, Leland

• 3 Green Swamp Road N.W., Supply

• South 17th St. and Wellington Avenue, Wilmington

• 6800 Carolina Beach Road, Wilmington

• 9021 Stephens Church Road, Wilmington

• 4113 U.S. 421, Wilmington

• 7375 Market St., Wilmington

• 5400 Oleander Drive, Wilmington

• 19240 U.S. 17., Hampstead

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Allison Ballard is the food and dining reporter at the StarNews. You can reach her at aballard@gannett.com

This article originally appeared on Wilmington StarNews: Wawa convenience store plans to open new stores in Wilmington, NC