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HomeMy WebLinkAbout8.3 PCSR PH ValeroServiceStationMiniMart a� STAFF REPORT PLANNING COMMISSION 04LIFO��l� DATE: April 9, 2013 TO: Planning Commission SUBJECT: PUBLIC HEARING: PLPA-2012-00016 Valero Service Station Mini-Mart Expansion and Drive-Through Carwash Conditional Use Permit and Site Development Review Report prepared by: Mamie R. Delgado, Senior Planner EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: The Applicant is requesting approval of a Conditional Use Permit and Site Development Review to expand an existing 1,485 square foot mini-mart by 1,545 square feet for the operation of a 3,030 square foot 7-Eleven, construct a new 767 square foot automated drive-through carwash and associated site improvements. The project is located at 7840 Amador Valley Boulevard within the Retail District of the Downtown Dublin Zoning District and Specific Plan. 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) Close the public hearing and deliberate; and 5) Adopt a Resolution approving a Conditional Use Permit and Site Development Review for the Valero Service Station Mini-Mart Expansion and Drive-Through Carwash. __ Submitted EYy R wed By Senior Planner Assistant Community Development Director COPIES TO: Applicant Property Owner File ITEM NO.: 911 Page 1 of 9 DESCRIPTION: Figure 1. Project Site (7840 Amador Valley Blvd) The Project site is located at the - southeast corner of Amador Valley Boulevard and Regional Street and is `. currently developed with the Valero Service Station and Mini-Mart. Adjacent uses include commercial shopping centers to the north (Shamrock Village) and to the ' east/south (Dublin Plaza Center), and another Service Station to the west. The site is approximately .55 acres in size and has a General Plan and �ltk Zoning designation of Downtown Dublin — Retail District. The Applicant is proposing to expand the existing mini-mart for a 7-Eleven convenience store, construct a new drive-through carwash, and install associated site improvements including parking, landscaping and new trash and electrical enclosures. N The Service Station was originally approved by the Alameda County Zoning Administrator on May 12, 1971 and was subsequently constructed in 1972. The Service Station included auto repair within an enclosed building. In 1985, the Service Station was operated by Texaco at which time a Conditional Use Permit and Site Development Review were granted by the Dublin Planning Commission to convert the auto repair building to a convenience food store. In 1988 Exxon purchased the service station and in 1989 the Dublin Planning Commission approved a Conditional Use Permit for the continued operation of the service station and mini-mart as a 24 hour service operation. The service station and mini-mart are now owned and operated by Dublin Valero who is requesting approval of a Conditional Use Permit and Site Development Review to expand the existing 1,485 square foot mini-mart by 1,545 square feet for the operation of a 3,030 square foot 7-Eleven and construct a new 767 square foot automated drive-through carwash. The Downtown Dublin Zoning District refers to the Downtown Dublin Specific Plan for permitted, conditional and prohibited uses. In the Retail District of the Downtown Dublin Specific Plan, a gas station and mini-mart are considered an Auto Services/Sales use and are subject to approval of a Conditional Use Permit by the Zoning Administrator; a drive-through carwash is considered a Drive-Through/Drive-In Business and is subject to approval of a Conditional Use Permit by the Planning Commission. Additionally, the Downtown Dublin Zoning District requires a Site Development Review permit for all development within the District. In accordance with the Dublin Zoning Ordinance Site Development Review Regulations (Section 8.104.040.C.3), any addition in a commercial zoning district that is greater than 1,000 square feet shall be reviewed by the Planning Commission. 2of9 Because the drive-through carwash and the Site Development Review require Planning Commission approval, the Zoning Administrator is referring its hearing jurisdiction on the gas station and mini-mart to the Planning Commission in accordance with the Dublin Zoning Ordinance Permit Procedures (Section 8.96.020.C.2). ANALYSIS: Conditional Use Permit A Conditional Use Permit enables the City to place conditions of approval on a project to ensure that the operating characteristics are compatible with surrounding uses. The proposed Project has been reviewed for issues related to parking, hours of operation, vehicle stacking at the carwash, and other operational characteristics. Conditions of approval have been placed on the Project, where appropriate, to ensure on-going compatibility with surrounding commercial properties. Service Station and Mini-Mart The Applicant is requesting to expand an existing mini-mart for the operation of a 3,030 square foot 7-Eleven convenience store which would continue to be operated 24 hours a day (Attachment 1). The existing gas station and mini-mart employs 4 individuals; 2 additional employees would be needed as a result of the mini-mart expansion for a total of 6 employees. Four employees would be working on the largest shift. No changes are proposed to the operation of the existing gas pumps. In order to ensure on-going compatibility with surrounding commercial properties, conditions of approval have been placed on the project prohibiting loudspeakers or amplified music outside of the building; requiring all activities associated with the mini-mart to be conducted entirely indoors; and, prohibiting the outdoor display of merchandise except as permitted pursuant to the Dublin Zoning Ordinance Temporary Use Permit regulations (Chapter 8.108). Drive-Through Carwash The Applicant proposes to construct a 767 square foot automated, drive-through carwash. The proposed carwash would be open 24 hours a day; 7 days a week (see Attachment 1). The carwash has been reviewed for safe vehicular access and circulation and meets the Dublin Zoning Ordinance Off-Street Parking and Loading Regulations requirement for providing 100- feet of stacking capacity (Section 8.76.070.A.10.C). The nearest residential uses are more than 500-feet away and are blocked by other commercial buildings. Therefore, these uses will not be impacted by noise associated with the carwash. Parking The Dublin Zoning Ordinance Off-Street Parking and Loading Regulations (Chapter 8.76) sets forth the required parking for a Service Station with Mini-Mart. A Service Station with Mini-Mart is required to provide 1 parking space for every 300 square feet of commercial sales area with a 5 space minimum. The proposed 3,030 square foot 7-Eleven would have 1,411 square feet of commercial sales area and requires 5 parking spaces. Nine parking spaces would be provided on-site. 3 of 9 The Dublin Zoning Ordinance does not provide a parking requirement for an automated drive- through carwash; however, the parking requirement for a Drive-in/Drive-through Business is determined through the Conditional Use Permit process. Due to the nature of an automated car wash, no additional parking is proposed to be required. The drive-through provides at least 100- feet of stacking capacity as required by the Dublin Zoning Ordinance Off-Street Parking and Loading Regulations (Section 8.76.070.A.10). Site Development Review Site Layout The Project site currently has two driveways, one off of Amador Valley Boulevard and the other off of Regional Street. The driveway along Regional Street is proposed to be removed and the area converted from a vehicular access point to parking (Attachment 2, Sheets A1.1A and A1.1). The driveway along Amador Valley Boulevard will remain and will be upgraded to meet current City Standards. Two additional driveways, just outside of the project boundary, one on Amador Valley Boulevard and the other on Regional Street, also provide reciprocal access to the project site from the adjacent shopping center and would continue to be accessible under the proposed site plan. The driveway along Amador Valley Boulevard (just outside of the project boundary) would be reconstructed by the Applicant and upgraded to meet current City standards. Existing public sidewalks along the perimeter of the project site would continue to provide pedestrian access to the site. A new, accessible pedestrian walkway would be constructed between Regional Street and the entrance to the expanded mini-mart (Attachment 2, Sheet A1.1). The existing mini-mart is located near the southeast corner of the site and would be expanded further east and south. The entrance to the mini-mart would remain facing the intersection of Amador Valley Boulevard and Regional Street and a second entrance would be added along the expanded portion of the building. The new carwash would be constructed on the east side of the building with the vehicular access beginning along the Regional Street frontage and wrapping around the south side of the building; the exit to the carwash would face the Amador Valley Boulevard frontage. An arched entry is proposed to be constructed at the entrance leading to the carwash (Attachment 2, Sheet A1.1 and 3.2). A new trash and electrical enclosure would be constructed on the west side of the building near the entrance to the carwash. Seven parking spaces would be located along the western frontage adjacent to Regional Street and an additional two parking spaces for access to the air/water and vacuum stations would be located along the Amador Valley Boulevard frontage (Attachment 2, Sheet A1.1). No changes are proposed to the existing gas pumps or canopy. Downtown Dublin Specific Plan Design Guidelines The Downtown Dublin Specific Plan contains Design Guidelines for development occurring within the Specific Plan Area. Some of the design standards contained in the Design Guidelines are required while others are recommended. The Design Guidelines require that all building facades that are visible from the public realm be designed with similar architectural elements, materials and colors as the front fagade. Due to the location of the project at the corner of Regional Street and Amador Valley Boulevard and the 4of9 adjacency of the Dublin Plaza Center parking lot, the project is largely visible from the public realm on all four sides. As a result, the Applicant proposes to incorporate the same architectural elements, materials and colors on all four sides of the Mini-mart and car wash building. The existing Mini-mart has a natural brick veneer finish on all four sides; this natural brick veneer would be incorporated into the Mini-mart expansion and new carwash along the lower half of the building creating a defined base and reducing the visual heaviness of the existing brick veneer which covers the entire Mini-mart building. A new 2-inch deep horizontal band would define the transition between the brick veneer base and the cement plaster finish proposed for the upper half of the expanded Mini-mart and new carwash building. The horizontal band would also have a cement plaster finish but would be distinguished from the upper portions of the building by color. There would be two main body colors on the building, the natural brick veneer and a soft gray (Kelly Moore: Seattle). The horizontal accent band would be painted a medium gray (Kelly Moore: Granite Cliff) which would also be used along a 2-inch deep trim along the building parapet. The existing and expanded portions of the Mini-mart would have a tile roof with a turquoise trim (Kelly Moore: Great Blue Green) to reflect the Valero corporate color. While corporate colors are discouraged in the Design Guidelines, the Applicant feels strongly about retaining this element of the project. All door and window trim is proposed to be painted a warm beige (Kelly Moore: Earth Stone). A proposed arched entry to the carwash as well as a proposed trash enclosure and electrical enclosure would incorporate similar colors and materials to maintain a unified look throughout the site (Attachment 2, Sheets A1.3 and A3.2). The Design Guidelines encourage muted and soft colors that are complementary to one another with 1-2 main colors and up to 3 accent colors. As described above, the color palette for the project includes 2 body colors (brick veneer and a soft gray) and 3 accent colors (medium gray, warm beige and turquoise). The roof tile is proposed to be a terra cotta color to match the existing mini-mart roof and provides an additional accent color to compliment the color palette. The Design Guidelines recommend that buildings located near major street intersections be treated as signature buildings and include a unique design feature such as a tower or other enhanced design that is oriented towards the street. Due to the projects location at the intersection of Regional Street and Amador Valley Boulevard a tower element has been incorporated into the project. The tower element is 22-feet high; 6-feet taller than the Mini-mart and carwash building. The maximum height allowed for tower elements in the Retail District of the Downtown Dublin Zoning District is 85-feet. The tower would include all of the architectural elements found on the building including a tile roof, plaster cement finish on the tower walls, a horizontal accent band, and a brick veneer base. The Design Guidelines also require that facades visible from streets and parking areas be articulated to improve design quality. As noted above, the project is located at the intersection of Regional Street and Amador Valley Boulevard and is adjacent to the parking lot of the Dublin Plaza Center; the location of the project makes it visible from streets and parking areas on all four sides. The small size of the existing mini-mart building does not lend itself to much articulation; however, the additions to the building to accommodate the expanded mini-mart and carwash provide some opportunities to incorporate changes in the building plane and thus articulate the building. Along the front elevation, the tower element provides the most prominent articulation of the building and along the side of the new carwash a proposed trellis aids in breaking up the plane of this side of the building which is viewed from the parking lot of the 5 of 9 Dublin Plaza Center. The rear of the building also includes changes in the wall plane as vehicles maneuver around the building into the carwash entry. The side elevation along Regional Street would be completely blocked by a proposed trash enclosure and electrical enclosure which themselves would be partially obscured by landscaping along the project frontage. The Design Guidelines encourage varying roof forms that are compatible with the overall style and character of the building. As noted above, the existing mini-mart building has a tile roof that would be carried over onto the expanded portions of the mini-mart as well as the tower element. The carwash would have a flat roof screened by a parapet with a 2-inch deep building trim. This change in roof form distinguishes the carwash from the mini-mart while consistent architectural elements (brick veneer base, horizontal trim band, plaster cement finish) continue to tie the two uses together in a uniform fashion. Floor Plan As noted above, the existing 1,485 square foot mini-mart would be expanded by 1,545 square feet for the operation of a 3,030 square foot 7-Eleven. The new mini-mart would contain approximately 1,411 square feet of commercial sales area with the remainder of the building containing two backrooms, a carwash equipment room, walk in cooler, office, utility room and restrooms (Attachment 2, Sheet A2.1). The sales area would feature a coffee island, beverage bar, sandwich case, hot food area, and beverage coolers. Landscaping In accordance with the Streetscape Master Plan, new tree grates would be installed around the three existing street trees along Amador Valley Boulevard and two new Callery Pear street trees and tree grates would be installed along Regional Street (Attachment 2, Sheets A1.1 and L1.1). The Downtown Dublin Specific Plan requires a 5-foot landscaped buffer between sidewalks and parking areas and a minimum tree planter width of 5-feet. Much of the existing site contains perimeter landscaped planters with a variety of plant material. The existing planter along Amador Valley Boulevard would be extended east and modified to accommodate two new parking spaces adjacent to an air/water and vacuum station (Attachment 2, Sheet L1.1). The minimum width of this planter would be 5-feet. The existing planter at the corner of Amador Valley Boulevard and Regional Street would be retained in its current configuration and additional plant material would be installed to fill in any bare spots. The existing planter along Regional Street would be extended north and modified to accommodate the new parking area which would replace the existing driveway. A variety of trees, shrubs and groundcover would fill out this landscaped area (Attachment 2, Sheet 1.1.). The minimum width of this planter would be 5-feet. The existing landscaped planter along the eastern property line would be replaced with a new 4- foot wide planter and would include a new wooden trellis along the eastern wall of the carwash (Attachment 2, Sheets A1.1, A3.1, and L1.1). Vines would be planted at the base of the trellis and trained to climb the structure to soften this elevation of the building. The planter would be filled out with shrubs. In order to maintain the required vehicular drive-aisle width on the adjacent shopping center property, the eastern landscaped planter would taper from 4-feet wide to 1-foot wide at the back 6of9 corner of the property. A new, split rail fence is proposed within this 1-foot area and would extend along the southern property line as well to discourage pedestrian cut-through traffic at the entrance to the carwash (Attachment 2, Sheets A1.3 and 1-1.1). Vines would be planted at the base of the fence and trained to wrap around the fence rails. The landscaped planter along the southern property line would be widened to 5-feet. This planter would be located on the adjacent shopping center property and would require that the existing angled parking spaces be restriped (Attachment 2, Sheets A1.1 and L1.1). The adjacent property owner has provided their consent for the Applicant to make these improvements on their property. An additional landscaped area would be constructed on the south side of the proposed electrical enclosure to soften the wall of the enclosure. CONSISTENCY WITH THE GENERAL PLAN, SPECIFIC PLAN AND ZONING ORDINANCE: The Project is consistent with the General Plan land use designation of Downtown Dublin — Retail District which allows for range of uses consistent with the Downtown Dublin Specific Plan. The Project is consistent with the Downtown Dublin Specific Plan land use designation of Downtown Dublin — Retail District in that Service Stations and Drive-Through Carwashes are a conditionally permitted use and the development of the Project site complies with the development standards and design guidelines contained in the Downtown Dublin Specific Plan. REVIEW BY APPLICABLE DEPARTMENT AND AGENCIES: The Building Division, Fire Prevention Bureau, Public Works Department, Dublin Police Services and Dublin San Ramon Services District reviewed the Project and provided Conditions of Approval where appropriate to ensure that the Project is established in compliance with all local Ordinances and Regulations. Conditions of Approval from these departments and agencies have been included in the attached Resolution (Attachment 3). NOTICING REQUIREMENTS/PUBLIC OUTREACH: In accordance with State law, a Public Notice 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 received no objections from surrounding property owners regarding the Project. A copy of this Staff Report has been provided to the Applicant and the Property Owners. ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW: The Project is located within the Downtown Dublin Specific Plan area, which was the subject of an Environmental Impact Report (EIR), State Clearinghouse #20100022005. The Downtown Dublin Specific Plan Final EIR was certified by City Council Resolution No. 08-11 dated February 1, 2011. Pursuant to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) Guidelines section 15168, Staff is recommending that the Planning Commission find the Valero Service Station Mini-Mart Expansion and New Carwash Conditional Use Permit and Site Development Review within the scope of the project analyzed in the Specific Plan EIR and find that no further CEQA review or document is required. 7of9 ATTACHMENTS: 1) Written Statement dated received by Dublin Planning on November 5, 2012. 2) Project Plans dated received by Dublin Planning on February 13, 2013. 3) Resolution approving a Conditional Use Permit and Site Development Review for the Valero Service Station Mini-Mart Expansion and Drive-Through Carwash. 8 of 9 GENERAL INFORMATION: APPLICANT: David J. Elliot, DJE & Associates, 17800 Cunha Lane, Salinas, CA 93907 PROPERTY OWNER: Cliff Hung, Dublin Valero, Inc. 7840 Amador Valley Boulevard, Dublin, CA 94568 LOCATION: 7840 Amador Valley Boulevard ASSESSORS PARCEL NUMBER: 941-0305-020-02 GENERAL PLAN LAND USE DESIGNATION: Downtown Dublin — Retail District SPECIFIC PLAN LAND USE DESIGNATION: Downtown Dublin Specific Plan/Retail District SURROUNDING USES: LOCATION ZONING GENERAL PLAN LAND USE CURRENT USE OF PROPERTY North DDZD Downtown Dublin — Retail District Commercial South DDZD Downtown Dublin — Retail District Commercial East DDZD Downtown Dublin — Retail District Commercial West DDZD Downtown Dublin — Retail District Commercial 9 of 9