OCALA, Fla. — Gov. Ron DeSantis announced the third, and possibly largest, Buc-ee's will soon be constructed on Interstate 75 in Ocala during a news conference Friday.
He said the newest Buc-ee's will be completed around the same time constructing a new interchange off I-75 at Northwest 49th Street in Ocala will be finished.
"If you've never been in one of the Buc-ee's — I mean, see all this stuff, they make so much stuff. They have those beaver nuggets. They have all kind of Bar-b-que they make," DeSantis said in part. "I mean, it's basically like the Shangri-la of service stations when you go into a Buc-ee's"
DeSantis said this third location is going to be "massive" with an 80,000 sq ft. store, 120 fuel pumps and more than 720 parking spaces.
"This is going to be bigger than the other two in Florida, and it may be as big as any Buc-ee's they've ever done. So, this is a great project," he said.
The first one opened in February 2021 in St. Augustine. The second Buc-ee's location opened just a month later in Daytona Beach with the help of Gov. Ron DeSantis.
At the time, the governor said Buc-ee's is "like the Shangri-La of service stations" with its friendly staff, pristine bathrooms and various accommodations.
The convenience store offers thousands of snack, drink and meal options for on-the-go travelers and Floridians alike. Some fan favorites are homemade fudge, kolaches, Beaver nuggets and fresh pastries.
If they haven't already, Floridians will come to love the friendly sight of that smiling beaver, as Buc-ee's has redefined traveling for customers across the South. Since it was founded in 1982, Buc-ee's has made its mark across Texas. In recent years, the gas station has opened locations in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, South Carolina and Tennessee.
10 Tampa Bay's Andrea Chu contributed to this report.