Design Review Commission backs Porsche Walnut Creek project with conditions on test drives, lighting and demolition

The Walnut Creek Design Review Commission on Oct. 22 reviewed a proposal for a new three-level Porsche dealership and service center at the corner of Second Avenue and North Main Street and recommended that the Planning Commission advance the project with conditions to limit neighborhood impacts.

Senior Planner Simmer Veil told the commission the applicant, Steven Scanlon representing Porsche Walnut Creek, seeks a planned-development (PD) rezone to allow limited deviations from the city's development standards on floor-area ratio (FAR) and height, and that the project would merge three parcels to construct a new enclosed sales and service building. ‘‘We are here tonight to gather Design Review Commission's feedback on the proposed Porsche dealership and service center,’’ Veil said. "The existing buildings on-site will be demolished for project construction."

Why it matters: The DRC's recommendations will be included in a Planning Commission hearing on design review, signage and tree removals and in a later City Council review of the PD rezone. Neighbors raised traffic, demolition air-quality, light, noise and privacy concerns that the commission asked the applicant and staff to address before the Planning Commission hearing.

Project design and program: Applicant Steven Scanlon and architect James Spence (Gensler) described a modern, vertically integrated dealership that consolidates sales, service and inventory inside one building. Key project numbers presented to the commission included: 3 parcels to be merged; a three-level building with a partial basement; 22 service bays; 49 surface customer/display stalls; approximately 87 stalls in the basement and 76 on a rooftop deck reserved for inventory and employee parking; a ramp to rooftop inventory; and integrated interior car-wash and detail facilities. The design team said most customer visits are by appointment and that inventory circulation will be internalized to limit curb queuing and street stacking.

Land use and code requests: Veil said the project requests flexibility in the PD to exclude certain non–customer-occupied support areas from FAR calculations and to redefine base elevation for height measurement on the sloped site, which staff said would preserve a 30-foot cap measured from the highest existing grade (approx. 135 feet) to the top of the parapet (approx. 165 feet). The site is zoned Service Commercial, which permits auto dealerships by right; design review and tree removals require Planning Commission review and tree mitigation if protected trees are removed. "The PD tonight is requested so it could provide that flexibility to exclude only the support areas from the FAR," Veil said.

Trees, landscaping and signage: The applicant reported removal of 21 trees, of which staff said 17 were approved by the city arborist as being in poor health and 4 were identified as highly protected (the staff presentation listed three valley oaks and one blue oak). Staff explained that removal of those protected trees would require payment into the city’s tree fund based on valuation. The project proposes 12 street trees (24–36-inch box), seven 15-gallon on-site trees and a mix of shrubs and ground cover. Signage includes two identical wall signs (~91 square feet each) and two monument signs; staff noted a sign exception is needed because the total sign area exceeds the 200-square-foot allowance for a single-tenant commercial building.

Public comment and neighborhood concerns: Eight speakers addressed the commission. Concerns clustered around traffic on narrow Second Avenue, safety for pedestrians and children, demolition dust and air-quality controls, light pollution from rooftop parking and equipment, noise and privacy for immediate neighbors on Barton Court, and the displacement of an established tenant (Massey's Bar and Grill). Tammy Kerr (Eco Performance Builders) and multiple neighborhood residents asked that test drives and service-car traffic be restricted on Second Avenue because the street is narrow and used by pedestrians, children and local businesses. Eric Payton, a part owner of Massey's, asked the city to consider relocation and long-term business impacts on his family operation. Speakers asked for clear demolition timelines, dust mitigation, and strict limits on lighting hours and spill into adjacent properties.

Commission recommendation and conditions: Commissioners said they generally supported the project’s design, the requested FAR and height approaches for the sloped site, and the proposed signage, but they also requested conditions to reduce neighborhood impacts. The commission’s recommendations to the Planning Commission included: 1) prohibit test drives and directional training into the residential neighborhood from the Second Avenue driveway (direct test drives to North Main Street); 2) post and/or design a no-right-turn restriction for vehicles exiting onto Second Avenue (commissioners asked staff and the applicant to explore physical curb/wayfinding measures, not only signage); 3) require full cutoff shielding for all lights on the west side facing residences and present proposed lighting timers/hours to the Planning Commission; 4) standard demolition and construction controls (hours, dust suppression, rig washing, limits on idling and other typical building-permit conditions); and 5) that protected tree removal, if approved by the Planning Commission, include required valuation payments to the city tree fund and on‑site/off‑site mitigation as required by the Walnut Creek Municipal Code. Commissioners asked staff to present the lighting schedule and demolition protections at Planning Commission review. The DRC's recommendation will be transmitted to the Planning Commission; commissioners did not take a binding final action on the PD rezone itself.

Staff and applicant commitments: The design team said it would internalize circulation to reduce street queuing; locate rooftop HVAC away from the west property line and screen mechanical equipment; implement photometric shielding with zero foot-candles at the west and north property lines; and work with staff on wayfinding and no‑test‑drive language. Steven Scanlon said the applicant would agree to a condition directing test drives away from the neighborhood: "If we have a stipulation that says these cars and any test drives out of the Porsche dealership need to go directly onto North Main Street and head north or south, that's completely agreeable." James Spence described the internalized program and high‑speed overhead doors and said shop walls and doors will meet STC ratings to reduce noise transmission.

Next steps: The Planning Commission will hold hearings on design review, signage and tree‑removal permits and then make a recommendation to the City Council for the PD rezone. Staff noted related requirements under the Walnut Creek Municipal Code and cited Assembly Bill AB 2,097 (as presented) regarding proximity to the Pleasant Hill BART station and parking requirements. The Planning Commission hearing date was not set at the DRC meeting.

Ending: The commission’s guidance emphasized neighborhood protections—traffic routing, lighting cutoff, demolition safeguards and tree mitigation—while supporting the project’s consolidated, vertical dealership design. Planning Commission review remains the next formal step.