Residents opposed the construction of Love’s in their area

Residents of the neighborhood near St. Louis, Missouri, are protesting the Love’s Travel Stop construction. Protesters cite noise, pollution and danger to children.

The area in Jefferson County is near the open field. It is the place where Love’s plans to build its new truck stop.

Mike Rose bought a house in the neighborhood 17 years ago and and always thought he would retire there.  Now he fears that the peace and quiet will be disturbed by idling trucks and diesel exhausts.

“It’s too close to this area,” Rose said. “They will be in my backyard. All exhaust gases will be right in my yard.”

“They’re talking about 500 trucks a day coming into the port,” said Scott Siegel, another resident. “There’s no way we can handle this here. We can’t handle the traffic.”

In an effort to stop the potential construction, Providence residents have created an online petition listing their concerns, and even launched small protests to show their concerns.

“Nobody here is against a truck stop. We are against its location,” Siegel said. “Today a truck drove into our area and took a wrong turn,” Justin Schweiss said during one of the demonstrations. “This is something we will face all the time.”

Love’s issued the following statement in response to residents’ concerns:

“Love’s places stores in areas that are easy to access for customers, and the business-zoned area it’s doing due diligence on off Interstate 55, in Herculaneum fits that. The location will also provide a safe and clean stop for drivers accessing the port nearby. The company will work with local officials to hold a public meeting to collect input on things like food offerings that will be available at the location and to address any concerns. Love’s is excited to join the growing community and bring with it the job opportunities, economic impacts and community giving initiatives a new location brings.”

Providence residents will hold an informational meeting about their petition at the community clubhouse on Sunday at 3:00 pm.