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HomeMy WebLinkAbout04-009 New Auto Dealership AGENDA STATEMENT PLANNING COMMISSION MEETING DATE: February 22,2005 SUBJECT: PUBLIC HEARING: PA 04-009 New Automotive Dealership - Conditional Use Pennit and Site Development Review for the construction of a 53,860 square foot Dublin Honda Auto Sales and Service establishment on three parcels at 6363, 6391, and 6451 Scarlett Court. Prepared by: Kristi Bascom, Senior Planner Yf../ ATTACHMENTS: 1. Resolution adopting a Negative Declaration for the construction of a 53,860 square foot auto sales and service establishment on three parcels at 6363,6391, and 6451 Scarlett Court 2. Resolution approving a Conditional Use Pennit (CUP) and Site Development Review (SDR) to construct a 53,860 square foot auto sales and service establishment on three parcels at 6363,6391, and 6451 Scarlett Court 3. Initial Study and Negative Declaration 4. Project Plans dated November 16, 2004 RECOMMENDATION: 1. Hear Staff presentation. 2. Open public hearing. 3. Take testimony from the Applicant and the public. 4. Close the public hearing and deliberate. 5. Adopt the Resolution (Attachment 1) adopting a Negative Declaration for the construction of a 53,860 square foot auto sales and service establishment on three parcels at 6363,6391, and 6451 Scarlett Court 6. Adopt the Resolution (Attachment 2) approving a Conditional Use Permit (CUP) and Site Development Review (SDR) to construct a 53,860 square foot auto sales and service establishment on three parcels at 6363, 6391, and 6451 Scarlett Court. PROJECT DESCRIPTION: Project Proposal The proposed project consists of a Conditional Use Pennit (CUP) and Site Development Review (SDR) for the development of a 53,860 square foot auto sales and service establishment on the former Dolan Lumber and Honda Used Car sites. The project will allow Dublin Honda to move from their current location on Amador Plaza Road to a larger, updated facility to accommodate their expanding business and enable them to consolidate their new and used car sales facilities on one site. Background The project site, comprised of 7.63 acres, is on the southeast corner of Dublin Boulevard and Scarlett Court, immediately north of Highway 580 and east of Dougherty Road (See Vicinity Map in Attachment 4). The site is in the greater Scarlett Court commercial and industrial area, and is surrounded by other auto-related and warehouse uses. G:\PA#\2004\04-009 Honda at Dolan SDR & CUP\PC Staff Report. doc COPIES TO: Applicant Property Owners ITEMNO.~ The project site is comprised of three main parcels of land. Two of the parcels, at 6365 and 6391 Scarlett Court (Assessor Parcel Numbers 941-0550-13-4 and 941-0550-14-2) were owned and occupied for many years by Dolan Lumber, which closed its operation in 2000. Since Dolan Lumber closed, the site has continued to be occupied by various industrial users, including a landscape supply company and a concrete supply company. The original Dolan Lumber buildings have remained on the site, but will be demolished with the construction of this project. The third parcel, at 6451 Scarlett Court, has been occupied for many years by auto and RV sales establishments, which were approved through a series of limited-term Conditional Use Permits. Honda Used Cars currently occupies the parcel at this time. In September 2003, Dublin Honda received approval from the City Council to remodel and expand their current dealership facility on Amador Plaza Road, where they have been located since the 1970's. They were going to enlarge the existing 10,000 square foot facility to over 33,000 square feet to accommodate a larger service area and more inventory parking. Before the renovation began on the 2.61-acre property, the Applicant decided to pursue relocating to a larger site to meet the needs of their growing business instead, and found the 7.63-acre properties on Scarlett Court to be a suitable fit. Scarlett Court Specific Plan and Future Improvements in the Area: On June 18, 2002 the City Council authorized the initiation of a specific plan for the Scarlett Court area in order to assess the best uses for the properties in the vicinity. A preliminary traffic study was completed to see if the area could support changes in land uses, but the study was inconclusive. Since the City is in the process of updating their traffic model, Staff has decided to hold off further work on the Specific Plan until the new traffic model is adopted later this year. Other upcoming changes in the Scarlett Court area will be the construction of the City's Capital Improvement Project No. 96852: the Dougherty Road improvement project. This project will widen the intersection of Dublin Boulevard and Dougherty Road to improve operations by constructing additional turn and through lanes. Since the widening of the intersection will impact the size and width of Dublin Boulevard adjacent to the project site, the City will be purchasing additional right of way from the Applicant along their project frontage. Condition of Approval No. 100 requires the Applicant to construct the frontage improvements in front of their parcel, and the City will construct (or reimburse the Applicant for) the additional drive lane that is to be added to the street. ANALYSIS: Conformance with Zoning Ordinance and General Plan The parcels at 6365 and 6391 Scarlett Court (Assessor Parcel Numbers 941-0550-13-4 and 941-0550-14-2) have a M-l (Light Industrial) zoning designation and the parcel at 6451 Scarlett Court (APN 941-0550-12-11) has a C- 2 (General Commercial) zoning designation. Automobile Sales and Service Establishments are permitted in both of these zoning districts with the approval of a Conditional Use Permit. The General Plan land use designation for the three parcels is Business Park/Industrial and Outdoor Storage, which permits a wide range of research, manufacturing, and retail activities conducted outdoors. Staff finds that the project is consistent with the Dublin General Plan because the project is compatible with the existing land use designation and would allow Dublin Honda to expand their operations while staying in Dublin, furthering General Plan Guiding Policy 2.2.2.A, which aims to keep automotive dealers in Dublin. Site Plan (Sheet At ofthe Project Plans) The subject site sits on the southeast corner of Dublin Boulevard and Scarlett Court. All of the existing buildings on the three parcels will be removed and the site will be completely built over with the proposed project. Page 2 Sheet Al ofthe Project Plans (Attachment 4) shows the Dublin Honda facility, as proposed, consisting of 6,676 square feet of automotive display area (showroom), 19,389 square feet of associated office, meeting, and storage space, and 27,795 square feet of repair facilities, which includes 41 service bays and parts storage areas. The showroom, office, and 36 repair bays are located in the main building, which will be located on the western portion ofthe 7.63-acre site. The express service oil change facility, which will contain the additional 5 service bays, will be located on the eastern portion of the site, and a canopy will join the two buildings. Most of the inventory parking will take place in the 245-stall parking lot on the southern portion ofthe site. Access to the site will take place from two driveways on Dublin Boulevard (one more than currently exists) and three driveways on Scarlett Court. The two southern driveways onto Scarlett Court will serve the southern inventory lot, and the other driveways will serve the northern dealership lot. Parking (Sheet At of the Project Plans) There is sufficient parking being provided onsite in accordance with the City's Parking Regulations (Section 8.76 of the Dublin Municipal Code). The parking for the project is as follows: Use Office Service Parkin Re uired 78 110 Parkin Provided 78 110 7 198 393 s aces 245 Condition of Approval Numbers 31 and 32 require that all employee, customer, and in-service parking spaces on site be marked as such so that they are not used for inventory parking. The parking space layout has been designed to provide easy access from the customer parking areas to the showroom and to the service area. Of the 195 public parking spaces, five (5) are disabled-accessible, including one disabled van-accessible stall. Two of the accessible stalls are adjacent to the quick-lube service facility and three of the accessible stalls are adjacent to the showroom facility. The site plan provides for ample inventory parking, and several display spaces will be visible from Dublin Boulevard and Scarlett Court. Circulation within the site allows for adequate turning movements and loading. Condition of Approval Number 7 requires that all drive aisles must be kept clear at all times and that all off- loading of vehicles be done on-site in the designated areas and not on any public street. Condition of Approval Number 32 requires that all vehicle storage be done on a paved surface in an area designed for parking. Building Elevations (Sheet A4 of the Project Plans) The overall design of the building is very much in keeping with the design that was originally approved for the Dublin Honda remodel on Amador Plaza Road, as described in the Background section above. The front of the building will face Dublin Boulevard with the entrance to the showroom, service center, and express service facility directly off the main driveways. The building is designed with a glass display/showroom area and a large blue metal cylinder as the major feature. The showroom is two stories (cylinder height of 30 feet) and has a wide "Honda Blue" stripe and wave along the front wall. The design intent of the glass, cylinder, and wave on the awning of the showroom is Page 3 to provide a distinctive and modern building that presents a clear statement of the car brand, and opens the view of the interior to prospective customers close to the street. There is also a metallic panel system that frames the top edge of the building and carries throughout the top of all four elevations. The building stucco will be painted white with a light gray base. All of the roll up doors on the front elevation are glass, but roll up doors on the other elevations are aluminum with glass windows. On the east, west, and south elevations there will be landscaped areas planted with tall, lean Italian cypress trees, which will add a vertical element to an otherwise very horizontal building. Overall, the design of the building is simple and modern. It will be a good match to the other newer auto and motorcycle dealerships in the area such as Arlen Ness, Kasabian Motors, Nissan, and Volkswagen. Landscaping and Fencing (Sheets Lt and L2 ofthe Project Plans) The Applicant submitted a conceptual landscape plan that provides for a wide variety of street trees, shrubs, vines, and ground cover that is incorporated into a coordinated site plan and landscape design. To enhance water quality, the Applicant is proposing to construct a bio-swale the length of the eastern property line and along the property line separating the main dealership facility from the inventory storage lot to the south. The bio-swale will function to purify stormwater runoff before it enters the storm drain system and also serve to let some of the stormwater recharge back into the ground before it hits the drain. The bio-swale will help reduce the amount of runoff entering the system and will also make the water that does enter the system cleaner. Grading And Utilities (Sheets Ct, C2, and C3 ofthe Project Plans) The location and design of on-site improvements has been carefully planned to accommodate the new building areas, and to also complement the existing site topography and minimize grading consistent with the policies of the General Plan and the City's grading standards. The site is relatively flat and has been graded to accommodate future structures and uses. The existing buildings on site (which will be demolished as part of this project) are served by water, sewer, natural gas and electrical power services. Additional connections will be needed to the site to supply increased quantities of water and sewage generation by the increase in building size and developed area on the site; however, capacity is available to meet the needs of the building expansion. Lot Line Adjustment and Lot Split Currently, the project site is comprised of three adjacent lots that run in a north-south direction, and all of the lots have frontage on both Dublin Boulevard and Scarlett Court. The Applicant is proposing to merge the three lots and re-divide them into two parcels. The main lot, which will have frontage onto Dublin Boulevard, will contain the Dublin Honda dealership in its entirety, and the second lot, which will have frontage onto Scarlett Court, will be a separate lot for the purposes of storing inventory. Conditions of Approval for the project require that the Applicant submit a Tentative Parcel Map for the lot reconfiguration. It is the intent of the Applicant to use the southern lot to store vehicle inventory for the Honda dealership. However, should the southern lot be sold in the future to a different owner, or should the Applicant propose the construction of a separate facility on the southern lot, there is sufficient parking on the northern lot to serve the auto dealership so that it could be a stand alone facility (The parking on the site is described in greater detail below). Condition of Approval No. 120 requires the creation of Covenants, Codes, and Restrictions (CC&Rs) for the two properties, so that it can be assured that areas that are common to both lots (i.e. driveways and bioswales) are properly maintained in perpetuity regardless ifthere is separate ownership in the future. Page 4 Traffic and Circulation The City Traffic Engineer examined the project proposal to determine the potential traffic impacts to be generated by an auto sales and service establishment of this size at this location. Based on the size of the proposed building, the future facility will generate in excess of 100 a.m. or p.m. peak hour trips, which means that the project is subject to the payment of Downtown Traffic Impacts Fees as required by City Council Resolution 210-04. The payment of the DTIF will provide for the project's fair share of funds towards infrastructure improvements that will be constructed in the downtown area and will mitigate the project's traffic impacts. N oiselN uisance: The dealership will be located in close proximity to 1-580. It is not anticipated that the dealership will have noise impacts on any adjacent uses, which are service commercial and industrial uses such as other auto-related businesses and warehouse and storage facilities. The dealership will operate seven days a week from 6:30 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. and will provide automobile sales, service and parts. Conditions of Approval for the project state that no amplified sounds shall be permitted outside the building. Loudspeakers, music, or similar amplified noises are strictly prohibited per Condition of Approval No.9. In addition, the Applicant/Developer will be responsible for controlling all on-site activities and maintaining the premises in a litter-free condition. Site signage Although there are signs shown on the project plans for illustrative purposes, there is no signage proposed or approved with this project application. Condition of Approval No. 28 requires that the Applicant submit a Master Sign Program for the project site at a later date. Hazardous Materials According to an Environmental Assessment report prepared by Phase One, Inc. dated July 2003, an underground fuel storage tank (UST) was closed and removed from the site in accordance with Alameda County Department of Environmental Health (ACDEH) requirements and protocols. According to the report, the contaminant values in the soil near the former UST basin exceeds established commercial/industrial land use thresholds. The Property Owner was required to prepare a "Workplan for Additional Investigation and Letter Report" for the County's review and approval, which they submitted on December 23, 2004, and the County has concurred with the Workplan with a few conditions. The Property Owner will need to comply with the County's request to amend the Workplan and will need to comply with the County's need to monitor the property. Condition of Approval 119 requires that the final Workplan be approved by the County prior to issuance of building pennits. The implementation of the Corrective Action Plan will be ongoing until the soil contamination is remediated to the satisfaction of the County. In addition to the UST, there is also a Volatile Organic Compound (VOC) Plume that has caused groundwater contamination underneath the subject site. Although it has been determined that the source of the contamination was businesses located to the east of the project site, the Regional Water Quality Control Board will continue to need access to the site to monitor the groundwater remediation. Condition of Approval No. 119 will also ensure that access to the site is provided until the remediation is completed and no longer creates a significant hazard to the public or the environment. Conditions of approval for the project state that if, during construction of the Project, presently-unknown hazardous materials are discovered, the Applicant/Developer shall adhere to the requirements of ACDEH, the Fire Marshal, the City, and/or other applicable agency to mitigate the hazard before continuing. The Applicant/Developer shall monitor and address any hydrocarbon residual found in the soil during excavation/trenching and prepare a site safety plan to be submitted to the Director of Public Works, and ACDEH. Page 5 ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW: The project has been reviewed under the California Environmental Quality Act, (CEQA), State CEQA Guidelines and the Dublin Environmental Guidelines. An Initial Study was prepared for the project and it was determined that the project will not have a significant impact on the environment (Attachment 3). A Negative Declaration was prepared and circulated for 20 days from December 18, 2004 to January 7, 2005. No comments were received during or after this period. CONCLUSION: This application has been reviewed by the applicable City departments and agencies, and their comments have been incorporated into the Conditions of Approval for the project. The proposed project 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) Hear Staff presentation, (2) Open Public Hearing, (3) Take testimony from the Applicant and the public, (4) Close the public hearing and deliberate, (5), Adopt Resolution (Attachment 1) adopting a Negative Declaration for the construction of a 53,860 square foot auto sales and service establishment on three parcels at 6363, 6391, and 6451 Scarlett Court, and (6) Adopt Resolution (Attachment 2) approving a Conditional Use Permit (CUP) and Site Development Review (SDR) to construct a 53,860 square foot auto sales and service establishment on three parcels at 6363,6391, and 6451 Scarlett Court. Page 6 GENERAL INFORMATION: APPLICANT: Ken Harvey, Dublin Honda, 7099 Amador Plaza Road, Dublin, CA 94568 PROPERTY OWNER: Michael Fitzpatrick, Trustee, Michael P. Dolan Trust, P.O. Box 31654, Walnut Creek, CA 94598 (2 parcels) and Ken Harvey (1 parcel) LOCATION: 6363,6391, and 6451 Scarlett Court (APNs 941-0550-13-4, 941- 0550-14-2, and 941-0550-12-11) ZONING: M-l (Light Industrial): 6363 and 6394 Scarlett Court C-2 (General Commercial): 6451 Scarlett Court GENERAL PLAN DESIGNATIONS: Business ParklIndustrial and Outdoor Storage ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW: The project has been reviewed under the California Environmental Quality Act, (CEQA), State CEQA Guidelines and the Dublin Environmental Guidelines. It was detennined that the project WILL NOT have a significant impact on the environment and a Negative Declaration was prepared. G:\PA#\2004\04-009 Honda at Dolan SDR & CUP\PC StaffReport.doc Page 7