Cherry Hill resident Mark Burckley lives behind the Wawa on Haddonfield Road. He was one of a number of residents who voices noise and traffic concerns about the new store, which opened in October 2013 on the former site of Cherry Hill Toyota.
About eight months later, Burckley said his fears about the store are coming to fruition.
Burckley told township council Wawa is violating restrictions placed on them regarding overnight deliveries. The agreement Wawa made with Cherry Hill was the store would not have deliveries between the hours of 10 p.m. and 7 a.m.
“We’re consistently having two or three semi-trucks delivering food at night,” Burckley said.
Burckley was part of a group of residents who argued against construction of the Wawa when it was before the planning board in March 2012. Previously, Cherry Hill Toyota was not open later than 9 p.m.
With the opening of the Wawa, residents became concerned about increased traffic and noise. While Burckley acknowledged changes to Yale Avenue have kept traffic from cutting through the neighborhood, he said the noise level at night has become a nuisance as predicted.
“When it was in the planning stage, everything that we said was going to come true has come true,” Burckley said.
Burckley said many of these deliveries are not taking place close to the regular hours. He described times when delivery trucks were arriving at 2 a.m.
“It’s keeping my family awake at night. It’s keeping my neighbors awake at night,” he said. “We voiced our opposition because of these issues.”
When Cherry Hill Toyota was open, Burckley recalled one instance where the dealership had an overnight delivery. They were warned about noise violations and there were no issues in the future.
With the Wawa, Burckley said he has called both the township and police department, but he said the noise has persisted.
Mayor Chuck Cahn expressed concern with the lack of response from Wawa. He said the noise restrictions placed on Wawa allow the township to investigate if there are reports the store is not following the agreement.
“We have the ability to go in there if they are not in compliance,” Cahn said.
Cahn said Wawa officials have been responsive to similar complaints in the past and plans to be in contact with the store to resolve the issue.
Wawa officials could not be reached for comment on the story.
