QuikTrip will roll into St. Joe

Greg Kozol, St. Joseph News-Press, Mo.
·2 min read

Aug. 22—For Steve Henderson, a visit to QuikTrip has become synonymous with a trip to Kansas City.

"I love it," said Henderson, who lives in Elwood, Kansas, and works in St. Joseph. "Every time I go to Kansas City, I stop in Platte City without fail, usually on the way there and the way back."

Soon, he might be able to save the trip. That's because it looks as if QuikTrip is coming to St. Joseph.

The company filed a permit with the city of St. Joseph to build a new convenience store just off Interstate 29 at 4312 Frederick Blvd. The hotel at that location, America's Best Value Inn, will be demolished.

City officials offered no timeline on when the store could open but noted that a review of permitting documents is underway. The construction permit outlines a 5,300-square-foot building at the busy intersection of I-29 and Frederick.

QuikTrip has long been rumored to be kicking the tires in St. Joseph. News of the company's expansion plan set off a chorus of online chatter, with regular customers like Henderson taking to News-Press NOW social media platforms to voice their enthusiasm.

Many noted that QuikTrip in Platte City proves to be a common destination for those who live in St. Joseph and work in Kansas City in addition to those with the opposite commuting pattern.

In 2021, a study from RDG Planning & Design found that 24,000 people come to St. Joseph to work on a given day.

"I'm an Uber driver that works in KC," one person wrote on News-Press NOW's Facebook account. "I go to QuikTrip multiple times during my shift because I know they are open and I will be safe at their locations late at night."

QuikTrip was founded as a small Oklahoma grocery store in 1957. It grew into an $11 billion private company with 1,000 stores in 17 states. The Platte City location, the chain's closest to St. Joseph, carries the company's ubiquitous roller food and a reputation for setting the local market floor on gasoline prices.

Greg Kozol can be reached at greg.kozol@newspressnow.com. Follow him on Twitter: @NPNowKozol.