MOUNT GREENWOOD — The Citgo station in Mount Greenwood that was sued for selling watery gasoline has closed.
The gas station and convenience store at 3700 W. 111th St. will likely have a new owner by early June, according to Bill Shaver of the Atlas Oil Co. The Taylor, Mich.-based firm already has one bid on the property, and he expects more in the coming days.
"For convenience store use, it is a great location," Shaver said Tuesday.
A lawsuit was filed against the station in January 2016 after four inches of water seeped into the underground tanks after a large rainstorm. Cracks in the concrete were blamed for the incident and have since been repaired, Shaver said.
The city's Department of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection discovered the contaminated gasoline. Shaver added that the city regulators did not prompt the sale of the station.
Still, the new owner will need to make a considerable investment in updating the gas station as well as the 2,600-square-foot convenience store, said Shaver, who would not disclose the sale price.
His firm bought the station from the previous owner Feb. 15. The station stayed open to clear out any remaining inventory for a few days before the locks were changed and the pumps were boarded up, he said.
The previous owner has several other gas stations in the Chicago market and chose to sell his station in Mount Greenwood to focus on those properties. Shaver said the station is drawing strong interest from buyers.
"What you like in the convenience store business is lots of people," said Shaver, adding that interested buyers see nearby Mount Greenwood Park and the Chicago High School for Agricultural Sciences as being filled with potential customers.
The apartment buildings nearby as well as the surrounding single-family homes also offer a prospective customer base, he said.
The station might or might not remain a Citgo-branded gas station. Shaver said the previous owner was near the end of his supply contract.
