Dottie's at a crossroads: Warehouse, roundabout, eminent domain talk swirls around market

Karen Hendricks
Updated ·7 min read

Dottie’s Family Market already sits at one of the busiest intersections in the Dover area – Canal and Bull roads.

But a proposed Dover Township warehouse complex and its potential ripple effect — via traffic on what are essentially country roads connected to the I-83 and U.S. Route 30 arteries — has the local market’s customers concerned for the future of the York County landmark. Many feel the community market will be sacrificed in the process.

And it’s the talk of the town inside Dottie’s, which used to be called Hake’s.

“Customers want the store to stay — they’re very supportive,” said Bonnie Weaver from behind Dottie’s front counter. She’s worked as a cashier at the market for 23 years — a timeframe that spans two different owners.

Austin Hogue says that while Dottie's can't always compete with big box grocery stores, they found a niche in locally made one-of-a-kind goods and a more personable atmosphere.
Austin Hogue says that while Dottie's can't always compete with big box grocery stores, they found a niche in locally made one-of-a-kind goods and a more personable atmosphere.

“Our customers like our mom-and-pop store — it’s very convenient for a lot of people because we carry a little bit of everything. They don’t want to lose that,” Weaver said. “We don’t know what’s going to happen — but so far we’re safe.”

Nearly 9,000 vehicles travel Canal Road (SR 0921), while nearly 7,000 use Bull Road (SR 4001) on a daily basis, according to PennDot’s annual average daily traffic counts.

It’s great for business, said owner Austin Hogue, since the roadways provide a steady stream of customers. Grab-and-go sandwiches, fresh deli salads and other convenience foods are right inside the door, while Dottie’s deli handles custom orders in the back.

Karen Repp-Robinson of Mount Wolf stopped by last week for more than five types of custom-sliced lunchmeat and cheeses at the deli counter.

The greenhouse at Dottie's Family Market spills out into their large parking lot that has one continuous entrance with no curbs. Austin Hogue says that one of the appeals of the store is that people can fly in and out from any direction.
The greenhouse at Dottie's Family Market spills out into their large parking lot that has one continuous entrance with no curbs. Austin Hogue says that one of the appeals of the store is that people can fly in and out from any direction.

“I’m probably here once a week for the lunchmeat,” said Repp-Robinson. “At most other stores, deli orders are pre-sliced and put into a case, but I like it custom-ordered.”

She has stopped by the corner market once a week as long as she can remember. Her parents did the same.

“I like to support local — the little guy — not corporate,” Repp-Robinson said.

In between the front door and the back deli, grocery shelves and freezer cases are lined with mostly local foods — York’s Epex Soft Pretzels, kimchi by Manchester’s Ferm Foundations, Kitty Town Coffee of Lebanon, Zook’s frozen chicken pies of Lancaster County, and no less than three York-based ice cream brands — Beck’s, Carman’s and Meadowburne.

Foot traffic and road traffic

While customer traffic inside the shop is steady, congested traffic outside has put the intersection on PennDOT’s radar: It’s under consideration for improvements—and that means the corner market and all its local charm could be seized under eminent domain to make way for a traffic signal or roundabout.

“We will work through it — whether it means them taking and tearing down the store or rebuilding,” Hogue said. “But until then, we’re going to keep going on and continuing to serve the community at Dottie’s.”

Dottie Berkheimer, right, smiles as Austin Hogue says that the family fell in love with Hake's store when they bought it. Dottie, who is the store's namesake, wasn't sure about having the store named after her in the beginning before it needed renovation work.
Dottie Berkheimer, right, smiles as Austin Hogue says that the family fell in love with Hake's store when they bought it. Dottie, who is the store's namesake, wasn't sure about having the store named after her in the beginning before it needed renovation work.

Hogue admitted traffic backs up at the popular intersection every afternoon, but he said he’s not concerned about safety — despite one of the market’s back corners jutting out mere feet from the intersection. Cracks in the market’s concrete block wall show the impact of a drunk driver’s vehicle striking the market in 2020.

“Since I’ve been here, there have been five crashes or less in that intersection,” Hogue said, describing how drivers typically take turns, waving each other through.

It’s been exactly five years — April 2019 — since Hogue and his family purchased Dottie’s, formerly Hake’s Grocery Store for 53 years. The family, which also owns and operates Berkheimer Auto Paint (BAPS), renamed the market in honor of Hogue’s grandmother Dottie Berkheimer. The corner parcel also contains a gas station, greenhouse, and a small strip center containing The Hive Coffee House and Café — all owned and operated by Hogue.

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Letter mentions eminent domain

“From the very onset of purchasing it from Hake’s, there were murmurs and rumors of a roundabout being put in,” Hogue said, “because it’s one of the busiest four-way intersections in York County.”

Last April, when Hogue received a letter from PennDOT, “it wasn’t a total shock,” he said. “But when I saw ‘eminent domain,’ that got my attention.”

Austin Hogue, left, who manages Dottie’s Family Market, describes the family taking on a completely different business just before COVID hit.
Austin Hogue, left, who manages Dottie’s Family Market, describes the family taking on a completely different business just before COVID hit.

The letter, dated April 15, 2023, informed Hogue that “contractors may need to enter your land to conduct surveys” due to “highway improvements in your area.” It states that entry is authorized by the Pennsylvania Eminent Domain Code. But the letter also states, “Be assured that our entry to conduct these surveys DOES NOT MEAN that your property has been selected for transportation improvements.”

The letter states that if and when a decision has been made about the intersection’s upgrades, Hogue would be contacted personally. To date, he’s received no additional communication from PennDOT.

That’s because PennDOT is still working on a report, an “alternatives analysis,” said Kyle Kreiser, PennDOT’s project manager for the district including York County.

That analysis, he said, takes traffic counts and safety issues into consideration, then proposes options for improvement.

“The two alternatives are a signal or a roundabout,” said Kreiser. “It’s a congestion project more than a safety project, although safety is something we’re looking at too.”

Dottie’s Family Market on April 4, 2024.
Dottie’s Family Market on April 4, 2024.

The project, Kreiser said, was set into motion by a consortium of the county’s municipal and planning leaders known as the Municipal Planning Organization, following “constituents complaining.”

While PennDOT’s recommendation — for a signal or a roundabout — may be announced soon, Kreiser said construction wouldn’t begin until 2027 at the earliest.

“We know that Dottie’s Family Market is full of other local businesses. We’re going to do the best we can at putting something out there that fits the area — we’re not purposefully going after anyone,” Kreiser said.

The MPO has received federal funding of up to $2.7 million for the intersection’s rehabbing. Specifically, Kreiser said the money is congestion mitigation and air quality (CAQ) funding. According to the U.S. Department of Transportation website, CAQ funds are “for transportation projects designed to reduce traffic congestion and improve air quality, particularly in areas of the country that do not attain national air quality standards.”

Huge warehouse project proposed

However, a contentious warehousing project right down the road is set to add 500 to 600 trucks – and possibly as many as 750 - to area roadways, including Dottie’s intersection already identified as a CAQ-qualified project.

The 1.9-million-square foot warehouse complex proposed by global company Hines was unanimously approved by the Dover Township Planning Commission last week, in a meeting packed with concerned area residents. The project now moves on to the township’s Board of Supervisors.

Previously: 1.9-million-square foot warehouse development gets OK from Dover Twp. planning commission

Kreiser said the warehouses’ highway occupational permits (HOP) issued by PennDOT to allow the development are “separate” from the Canal and Bull Roads intersection, and “I’m not going to speak for those [HOP] projects.”

Half of the Canal and Bull Road intersection — the northeast corner as well as the southeast corner containing Dottie’s – sit in Conewago Township. The northwest and southwest corners lie in Dover Township. Kreiser said both municipalities are receptive to hearing PennDOT’s recommendations.

Historic roots

Dottie’s — and the corner of Canal and Bull — has already stood the test of time as a landmark intersection. Before it was Dottie’s or Hake’s, it was Harbold’s, and before that — Motter’s, said Hogue. In the late 1800s, it was the site of a community post office. A portion of Dottie’s, down to the foundation, Hogue said, is anchored within an old farmhouse dating back to the 1700s.

“Nothing’s going to stop growth in the area, so I can’t get worked up about it,” Hogue said. “It obviously makes you a little sad to see these things changing, but you also have to adapt.”

Most days, Hogue said he feels optimistic about the market’s future, primarily thanks to his loyal customer base.

“A lot of local people have our back,” said Hogue. “There’s been overwhelming support for us, which we greatly appreciate, because that’s been our goal ever since we purchased the market — to serve the community. I’m realistically, overwhelmingly optimistic they won’t take the store.”

This article originally appeared on York Daily Record: Warehouse, roundabout, eminent domain talk swirls at Dottie's