By Sara Beth Williams–
The new owner of an old gas station once proposed to become a quick-serve pizza restaurant almost a decade ago wants to reactivate the gas station, according to the city.
City project submission records indicate that the new owner, Pieman Khalil, of an inactive gas station property on Auburn Boulevard and Watson Way, has submitted a Use permit request to the city requesting to reinstate gas station use at the prpoperty.
Documents submitted to the city show layout plans for the property would largely remain unchanged, with no new buildings added, and no trees removed from the property. Documents also include a new image rendering of the property where the gas station is freshly repainted in an orange, black and white color scheme.
The proposed gas station would operate from 5 a.m. to 12 a.m. daily.
Located on the corner of Auburn Boulevard and Watson Way adjacent to the Citrus Heights Car Wash and across from Rusch Park, the abandoned property is unmaintained with weed overgrowth, and boarded up windows. Various noncommercial vehicles have been seen parked on the property off and on over the last several months.
The property was long ago utilized as a gas station and later served briefly as a donation site for a company called ReUseIt. Plans to build a drive-thru pizza store were approved for the site in 2018 but did not materialize.
Following the unfortunate death of the previous owner who had pitched the idea of a pizza drive-thru restaurant, the city confirmed in an email in early March of this year that the owner’s family chose not to move forward with plans for the quick-serve pizza restaurant and that the property had since sold to another owner in 2025.
There has been no meeting date for review listed yet by the city.
In 2017, the 16,000-square-foot corner property was purchased by entrepreneur Mercer Tyson, who received approval from the city the following year to convert the building into a California Quick Slice pizza drive-thru. Plans for the pizza drive-thru restaurant on Auburn Boulevard were approved by the city’s Planning Commission in 2018.
See visual of pizza drive-thru: Citrus Heights planning commission approves new drive-thru pizza
In 2019, Tyson said financing difficulties had delayed his plans, and in 2020, he said he had acquired a building permit and hoped to have financing approved within two months’ time. His plans were tragically cut short, however. In June 2021, his son-in-law confirmed that Tyson had passed away.
Sacramento County Assessor’s Office data shows that the original building was constructed in 1969 and that the property was purchased most recently in May 2025.
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