Planning commission approves Center Ridge restaurant and lounge with curb, lighting conditions

The City of North Ridgeville Planning Commission on April 8 voted unanimously to approve a development plan for a restaurant and lounge at 39462 Center Ridge Road, subject to conditions to protect a utility pole and a fire hydrant and to resolve outstanding lighting and construction detail issues.

Planning and Development Director Lehi told the commission that council had approved rezoning the parcel from industrial to commercial and that a lounge is a conditional use in the B3 Highway Commercial District. He summarized earlier requests from the commission and staff and said the applicant had moved the ingress curb cut but several details remained to be resolved before a building permit: added landscape and curb protection near the pole and hydrant; clearer elevation and stucco application details; and a photometric lighting plan with compliant fixtures and ten-foot grid foot-candle readings.

The commission’s engineering representative reiterated concern that the fire hydrant and an existing sign project into the vehicle exit path and recommended a curved curb and enlarged landscape island rather than only painted striping to protect those features. The applicant, Steven Joseph, confirmed he had pulled the striping back behind the pole and said he expected the parking lot would be patched, sealed and restriped as shown on the updated plans. Joseph also described the patio railing material as a proposed powder-coated aluminum substitute for the previously submitted steel railing detail.

Planning staff and the city engineer said the photometric plan submitted did not conform to the zoning-code presentation requirements (it used 30-foot squares rather than a 10-foot grid and lacked properly shown foot-candle values and compliant fixture cut sheets) and flagged angled fixtures that are not full-cutoff. Staff said lighting and fixture cut sheets must be clarified administratively before permit issuance. Lehi noted construction-detail information on stucco remained limited and would need to be resolved in the permit process.

After discussion, the commission approved the development plan with conditions that the curb geometry be modified to protect the utility pole and the fire hydrant per engineering recommendations and that the administration review and approve a complete lighting and photometric submission prior to permit issuance. The roll call was recorded as Commissioners Ali, Toth, Abens and Smolik voting yes; the motion carried unanimously.

The commission did not approve final material/finish details on the elevation as part of this action and directed remaining construction detail items—stucco application specifics, fence/railing styles and compliant light fixture cut sheets—be completed in the building-permit review.