Planning commission recommends Drake’s Car Wash to council with conditions on lighting, PennDOT, stormwater and FTMSA approvals

The Planning Commission recommended that borough council approve Drake’s Car Wash land development and lot consolidation, subject to agency approvals and technical plan revisions related to lighting and stormwater.

Applicant representatives said the design had been revised since the previous meeting and that the Westmoreland County Conservation District had approved erosion and sediment and stormwater management for the sub‑one‑acre disturbance components; however the project now exceeds one acre in total disturbance and the applicant confirmed an NPDES/MPDES permit application is required. The applicant also is coordinating sanitary sewer taps with FTMSA and said taps from a previously approved car wash are being reallocated.

A municipal consultant provided an acoustic review and a traffic queuing analysis. Staff reported that the building elevations and glazing percentages were revised upward compared with an earlier submission and that the traffic and acoustic studies met the ordinance standards; the applicant agreed to a post‑development acoustic measurement along the western property line (adjacent to the former PNC site) to confirm no mitigation is required.

Commissioners and members of the public asked detailed questions about the vacuum system (single central compressor serving multiple vacuum bays) and hours of operation; the applicant said the compressor is enclosed and that building and site noise were within municipal limits under the current ordinance. The applicant also showed revised materials: brick at entry/exit faces and colored split‑face masonry elsewhere.

Conditions the commission asked council to require before final action include: acceptance of waiver requests by council (same waivers previously granted in similar projects), a revised lighting plan to meet the borough requirement of zero foot‑candles at the property line, PennDOT HOP (highway occupancy permit) if required for the access, approval of the NPDES/MPDES permit and conservation district sign‑off, and FTMSA approval and planning module coordination for sewer taps. The commission voted to forward the consolidated lot and land development applications with those conditions.

What’s next: The applicant will revise the lighting plan, finalize stormwater responses for resubmission, secure required agency permits/approvals, and council will consider the applications with the commission’s recommended conditions.