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HomeMy WebLinkAbout8.1 Hospice Foundation of the East Bay PA08-039AGENDA STATEMENT PLANNING COMMISSION MEETING DATE: November 25, 2008 SUBJECT: PUBLIC HEARING: PA 08-039 Hospice Foundation of the East Bay - Conditional Use Permit to allow Hospice to accept donations at a retail establishment located at 7381 Amador Valley Blvd. (Quasi Judicial) Report Prepared by Martha Aja, Assistant Planner ATTACHMENTS: 1) Resolution approving a request for a Conditional Use Permit for an interior donation center for Hospice Foundation of the East Bay. 2) Written Statements from Applicant. 3) Site Plan. 4) Floor Plan. RECOMMENDATION: 1) Receive Staff presentation; 2) Open the public hearing; CX/ 3) Take testimony from the Applicant and the public; 4) Close the public hearing and deliberate, and 5) Adopt a resolution approving a request for a Conditional Use Permit for an interior donation center for Hospice Foundation of the East Bay. BACKGROUND: Vicinity Map: Hospice Foundation of the East Bay was formed in 1999 to cover the cost of uncompensated care by soliciting individuals and corporate donations, writing grants, sponsoring fund-raising events, and managing thrift shops. Hospice Foundation of the East Bay currently manages five thrift shops, which include locations in Antioch, Concord, Danville, Walnut Creek, and Alamo. The proposed location of the Hospice Foundation of the East Bay Thrift Store in Dublin will be in the same tenant space where Shepherd's Gate Thrift Store was formerly located in the northwest corner of the Valley Center Page 1 of 5 G:\PA#\2008\PA 08-039 Hospice Boutique CUP\PCSR.11.25.08.doc COPIES TO: Applicant/Property Owner In-House Distribution File I ITEM NO. s shopping center. The proposed retail thrift store will include the sale of used clothing, furniture and household accessories. In addition to the sale of items, the business will also include walk-in donations. The proposed thrift store in Dublin will benefit the pediatric program of Hospice Foundation of the East Bay. A building at which donations are accepted is considered Recycling Facilities. Chapter 8.08 of the Dublin Zoning Ordinance defines Recycling Facilities as an indoor or outdoor facility which accepts reusable materials. The project site is zoned as a PD (Planned Development) which consists of community serving retail uses that are consistent with the C-1 (Retail Commercial) zoning district. Recycling Facilities require authorization of a Conditional Use in the zoning district in which the proposed store is located. Conditional Use Permit approval by the Planning Commission is required in order to allow the Hospice Foundation of the East Bay to accept donations inside their store because the drop-off of donations and resale of the donations is consistent with the definition of a Recycling Facility. The previous business, Shepherd's Gate Thrift Store, at this location did not accept donations. ANALYSIS: The Conditional Use Permit process allows the City to place Conditions of Approval on the project to ensure that the operation of the proposed use is compatible with the surrounding uses. The project has been reviewed for issues related to operating characteristics, parking, and project design. Conditions of Approval have been proposed where appropriate to ensure compatibility with the surrounding uses. Operating Characteristics: The project site is located at 7381 Amador Valley Blvd. The tenant space is located within the Valley Center shopping center and was previously utilized by Shepherd's Gate Thrift Store. Shepherd's Gate, like the Hospice Foundation of the East Bay, is a thrift store; however, no donations were accepted by Shepherd's Gate at this location. There are a variety of retail, restaurant and commercial serving uses located within the Valley Center shopping center. The picture to the left shows the proposed location of the Hospice Boutique Thrift Shoppe. The donation center will operate seven days a week. The proposed hours of operation are Monday through Saturday 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. and Sunday 12:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. There will be a total of 3 employees plus 2-3 volunteers per shift. The donation center will be located inside the existing retail store. Patrons will be required to park their vehicle and take their donations inside the store during business hours (Refer to Attachment 4). No donations will be accepted outside of the store. There will be one truck delivery and/or pick-up per day (Monday through Friday only). A condition of approval has been placed on the project which requires the potential for week-end deliveries and/or pick- ups in the future if it is determined that more items are dropped off over a typical week-end than what the store can accommodate (Condition of Approval 14). Deliveries and/or pick-ups will be between 9:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. or 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. Deliveries and/or pick-ups will take place at the front entrance of Page 2 of 5 the building using the main entrance; to the shopping center on Amador Valley Blvd. If necessary, the rear entrance will be accessed using the utility van. A MR -a Site Plan In order to minimize the impact on the - - U -- - - -`` ``" adjacent businesses and to ensure that items are not left outside of the store .H when. the store is closed, Hospice Foundation of the East Bay will Fi incorporate several measures into the operation of their businesses including -t no outside storage, appropriate signage I L:`?? ` to direct patrons and the installation of f video monitoring equipment to monitor N ti "t s 3 , the site. , ?, II 33 • ? h M i?111 ?:. The parking lot will be monitored throughout the day to ensure that all trash is removed from the site and any abandoned goods are removed. Several Conditions of Approval require that these efforts be conducted regularly to ensure that the site is litter free (Conditions of approval 7, 15 and 16). Additionally, in order to ensure that adequate monitoring will be conducted on the site and to ensure that patrons do not abandon goods outside of the store, a camera system will be installed outside of the building. The camera system will capture a photograph of the pat-on and will announce a recording stating that the business is closed and dropping any items off after business hours is considered littering (Attachment 1, Conditions of Approval 18 and 19). In order to minimize impacts on the surrounding properties, the loading trucks will be required to either park in the parking stalls at the front entrance of the building or utilize the rear entrance only (Condition of Approval No. 12). Trucks are not permitted to park in the drive-aisle at any time. The Zoning Ordinance does not include a parking requirement for Recycling Facilities. In this case, the parking for a recycling facility in conjunction with a retail store would be 1 stall per 300 square feet (the same as retail). The previous tenant of the proposed location of the Hospice Foundation of the East Bay Thrift Store was Shepherd's Gate, which also was a retail use; them-fore, the proposed donation center does not require any additional parking spaces. The Conditions ol'Approval (contained in Attachment 1) have been drafted to require that the property owner exercise adequate property maintenance of the site and also include requirements for the operation of all the businesses located at the site. These conditions have been drafted to minimize the impact the donation center will have on the adjacent neighbors as well as reducing impacts to City services (such as the Police Department) when items are left outside of the store. The Hospice Foundation of the East Bay has agreed to the required condition s. With the incorporation of these Conditions of Approval and with the project description as outlined in the project plans and written statement, the acceptance of donations at the Hospice Foundation of the East Bay Thrift Shoppe will be compatible with the existing use and businesses in the vicinity. Page 3 of 5 Conformance with Zoning Ordinance and General Plan The project site is zoned as a PD (Planned Development) which cons sts of community serving retail uses that are consistent with the C-1 (Retail Commercial) zoning district. A Recycling Facility is permitted at the proposed location with the approval of a Conditional Use Permit. The General Plan Land Use designation for the parcel is Retail/Office, which permits a wide range of retail and service uses. The proposed applications are consistent with the Dublin General Plan and the Municipal Code because the projects are compatible with the existing zoning and General Plan Land Use designation. As conditioned, the proposed Conditional Use Permits would ensure that the donation center will be operated and maintained in such a manner as to reduce impacts on surrounding properties. Conditional Use Permit Findings In order for the Planning Commission to approve a request for a Conditional Use Permit, the Planning Commission must make all of the findings found in Section 8.100.060 of the Dublin Zoning Ordinance and included on pages 2-3 of the attached Resolutions (Attachment 1). Review by City Departments The Public Works Department, Building Division, Fire Department, Police Services and Dublin San Ramon Services District have all reviewed the proposed project. Conditions of approval from these agencies are included in the proposed. Resolution (Attachment 1). NOTICING: In accordance with State law, a public notice regarding this hearing was mailed to all property owners and occupants within 300 feet of the proposed project. A public notice was also published in the Valley Times and posted at several locations throughout the City. To date, the City has not received comments or objections from surrounding property owners or tenants regarding the current proposal. ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW: The project has been reviewed under the California Environmental Quality Act, (CEQA), State CEQA Guidelines and the Dublin Environmental Guidelines, and the project has been found to be Categorically Exempt per CEQA Section 15301 (minor alteration of existing faciliti,-s). CONCLUSION: This application has been reviewed by the applicable City departmen-:s and agencies, and their comments have been incorporated into the Conditions of Approval for the project. The proposed project, as conditioned, is consistent with the Dublin General Plan and the Zoning Districts in which the project site is located and represents an appropriate project for the site. RECOMMENDATION: Staff recommends that the Planning; Commission: 1) Receive Staff presentation; 2) Open the public hearing; 3) Take testimony from the Applicant and the public; 4) Clo;;e the public hearing and deliberate; and 5) Adopt Resolution (Attachment 1) approving a request for a Conditional Use Permit for an interior donation center for the Hospice Foundation of the East Bay. Page 4 of 5 GENERAL INFORMATION: APPLICANT: Sandra Mejia Hospice Foundation of the East =3ay 3470 Buskirk Avenue Pleasant Hill, CA 94523 PROPERTY OWNER: LOCATION: ASSESOR'S PARCEL NUMBER: GENERAL PLAN LAND USE DESIGNATION: ZONING: SURROUNDING USES: Dr. Jamal Modir Samaritan Surgical Clinic 2505 Samaritan Drive, Ste. 301 San Jose, CA 95124 7381 Amador Valley Blvd. 941-0175-021-08 Retail/Office PD (Planned Development) Location Zoning General Plan Land Use Current Use of Property Site PD (Planned Retail/Office Retail Development) North R-1 (Single-Family Single-Family Residential Residential) Residential South PD (Planned Retail/Office/Automotive Retail Development) East PD (Planned Retail/Office Retail Development) West PD (Planned Retail/Office Retail Development) Page 5 of 5