Where Should Buc-ee’s Build Their First Michigan Location?

Is Buc-ee's taunting Michigan? As many are already aware, Buc-ee's put up a billboard on I-96 between Grand Rapids and Lansing advertising a Buc-ee's location which is 444 miles away.

Buc-ee's is great, but you aren't driving 444 miles to see one.

Now, as our friends in Grand Rapids pointed out, Buc-ee's has done this sort of thing before. After advertising and Alabama Buc-ee's in Indiana, soon one popped up in nearby Dayton, Ohio.

With Ohio and Wisconsin both opening locations of their own, a location in Michigan or Indiana would make a ton of sense.

And yeah, sure, it won't happen for some time. But with everyone's favorite buc-toothed mascot spreading across the nation with its famous take on roadside convenience, it's worth pondering at least.

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And sure, you'll probably disagree with me on where I think it should be built. But I feel as though my choice is rooted in enough logic to really make a strong case.

For those that don't know, Buc-ee's is opening up roughly 10 new locations over the next few years all across the country, though mostly in the southeast. However, those two new locations in Ohio and Wisconsin indicate that Michigan likely isn't too far off from getting its first Buc-ee's, a 100-pump gas station with a convenience store slap full of novelty beavers and BBQ sandwiches and pork rinds.

Now, I've narrowed down my choice of where the first Buc-ee's in Michigan should be built, but I will provide some other logical choices below. One thing is for certain, it's gotta be in the Lower Peninsula. Sorry, Yoopers.

One other certainty, it's gotta be close to the interstate, and not Interstate 75. Why? well, because it can't be too close to Detroit. Buc-ee's rarely puts its gas stations right next to major cities, especially for its first venture into a new state. Take Ohio for example, three massive cities to choose from and the first location is going up outside of Dayton, just off I-75, which may be too close to an I-75 Michigan Buc-ee's anyway.

Now, luckily, there is a space where two interstates intersect, but we aren't going to go directly into the heart of Marshall. Marshall was initially my idea, but I think there is a location that really fits what Buc-ee's tries to do with its locations: Fredonia Township.

Now, I get it small-town Michiganders, there are not many folks in the middle of a peaceful town just off the interstate that want a ton of construction and traffic from something as insane as a Buc-ee's, however, Fredonia makes a ton of sense. Fredonia is just south of the I-94/I-69 intersection in Marshall, meaning travelers through the Mitten State in every direction would be able to stop by the beaver's gas station.

The Tri-Lakes Trails Campground and the Marshall Country Club would be within a reasonable distance of the theoretical Buc-ee's to drum up natural traffic from campers and wealthy golfers.

Technically, the residents of Marshall get the most benefit out of this. The city already has Firekeepers (technically, it's close enough) and the Ford Battery plant on the way. There is, and will be, money to spend, and they'll spend it at Buc-ee's.

But, if you hate that idea, here are a few options spread across Michigan.