A county planning hearing officer held a California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) scoping session July 14 to begin the environmental review of the Woodcrest Veil Centre Project, a proposed 9.42-acre shopping center north of Van Buren Boulevard in the Lake Matthews–Woodcrest area.

Jose Merlon, principal planner for county staff, described the project and the Environmental Impact Report (EIR) scoping process. The project as presented would include a 46,724-square-foot Stater Brothers Market, a 5,000-square-foot multi-tenant retail building, three future commercial pads that could include a gas station, a convenience store and two drive-through restaurants, and retention of an existing 1,483-square-foot Farmer Boys. An existing 7‑Eleven and an adjoining strip mall would be demolished. The proposal includes about 360 parking spaces, with accessible and EV‑ready stalls, Merlon said.

Merlon said the project requires a plot plan for site development, a conditional use permit for the gas station (including alcohol sales), a general plan amendment to redesignate approximately 6.21 acres to commercial use, and a zoning change for about 4.91 acres from agricultural to commercial. He said the EIR will assess topics including air quality, traffic, noise, biological resources and cultural resources.

Hearing officer John Hildebrand and planning staff emphasized that the scoping session is for identifying environmental topics to study in the EIR, not for deciding approval or denial of the project. Merlon said written comments on the Notice of Preparation (NOP) were being accepted and displayed the contact information; he said the NOP comment period as noticed ended July 18, 2025.

Ross Geller, identified as the EIR preparer, said there was a “snafu” at the State Clearinghouse and that the public review period would actually extend to July 21, 2025. Geller said he was available to answer questions about the EIR scope.

Commissioners and staff asked procedural questions. Hildebrand asked whether the general plan amendment had been initiated and whether the item had gone to the planning commission; Merlon said the proposal had gone through the GPAC/planning commission process and was slated to go to the Board of Supervisors. Merlon said he did not have a Board of Supervisors hearing date available at the session. He also said the applicant is required to present to the Temescal Valley Municipal Advisory Council (MAC) when the implementing project is submitted, and that the applicant has six months after the application window closes to fully submit a project.

There were no in‑person public speakers at the session on July 14. Merlon reiterated that no formal action was being taken at the scoping session; the project will return to the planning commission and the Board of Supervisors for formal decisions after the Draft EIR and related hearings.

Why it matters: The EIR scoping process determines which environmental topics the county will study in detail; that analysis can influence project design, mitigation measures and conditions the county might impose if the project advances to entitlement hearings.

What’s next: The county will prepare a Draft EIR that incorporates scoping input and release it for public review and comment; staff will prepare responses to comments and present a Final EIR to decision makers for certification and project approvals.