Planning Commission approves Starbucks drive‑through, 2,200 sq ft, at 4691 Clayton Road

The Concord City Planning Commission on July 16 approved a use permit, tree‑removal permit and design and site review for a new 2,200‑square‑foot Starbucks with a drive‑through and outdoor patio at 4691 Clayton Road in the TJ Maxx shopping center.

The project applicant, represented by architect Frank Coda of Greenberg Farrow, will demolish an existing multi‑tenant building on a 0.69‑acre parcel and construct a single‑story Starbucks with a drive‑through lane, outdoor patio, landscaping, lighting and a trash enclosure. City project planner Ryan Linhardt told the commission the project is conditionally allowed in the CMX (commercial mixed use) district and "the project is categorically exempt from CEQA." The design review board reviewed the plans and recommended approval after revisions, Linhardt said.

Why it matters: The site is along a busy commercial corridor that residents and commissioners said already experiences queuing and loitering; commissioners sought assurances that the design, queuing capacity and frontage improvements would limit impacts to Clayton Road and Bailey Road and to neighboring parcels.

Key facts and project features - Location: 4691 Clayton Road (one of five parcels making the TJ Maxx shopping center). - Size: 2,200 square feet on approximately 0.69 acres. - Hours: Proposed 7 days a week, 4 a.m. to 11 p.m. - Staffing: Initial project description said 8–12…