A new Circle K market selling Union 76 gas and featuring a car wash, Pizza Hut and Jamba Juice, has opened on a highly-visible parcel shouldering northbound lanes of Highway 99 just outside of the Ceres city limits.

Elk Grove dentist Devan Dalla broke ground on the project in April 2022 with a traditional Indian ritual of breaking open coconuts as a good omen.

The new 5,300 square foot store at 1212 Joyce Avenue west of Herndon Court also includes a Pizza Hut counter. A 1,530-square-foot Express Car Wash is also on the premises in a separate building.

Last year Ceres Mayor Javier Lopez welcomed the new business, noting that it helped in Ceres’ beautification effort as the old vacant lot which has been riddled with homeless squatters for years.

The property at 1212 Joyce Avenue, is located in the unincorporated part of Stanislaus County but within the Ceres sphere of influence. Ultimately, the property will be annexed to the city of Ceres.

The project didn’t require county approval since gas stations, car washes, convenience stores, and drive-thru restaurants are a permitted use in the C-1 zoning district. However, in November 2020, Harman Grewal doing business as D&G Group, LLC, was granted a variance to forego a requirement to build an eight-foot-tall masonry wall on the eastern property line. The reason is due to an existing 20-foot county maintained alleyway (Herndon Court) that gives access to homes east of the new store site. The developer proposed to build the masonry wall not right on the eastern property line but along the east side of the alleyway to utilize the space for a drive-thru lane which otherwise wouldn’t be possible due to the size and shape of the parcel. In doing so, the developer dedicated a 10 extra feet from his property to make the alley 30 feet wide.

The store is accessible from Joyce Avenue.