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Plan Commission approves Tommy’s Express car wash SIP; commission records 7-1 vote
Summary
The commission approved a specific implementation plan for a 5,270‑sq‑ft Tommy’s Express drive‑through car wash with 20 vacuum stations at 1700 South Keeler Street; the motion passed 7-1 with Chairman Perry voting no.
The Oshkosh City Plan Commission approved a Specific Implementation Plan (SIP) for a 5,270‑square‑foot drive‑through Tommy’s Express car wash at 1700 South Keeler Street, including 20 vacuum stations and 30 parking spaces for a combined total of 50 parking spaces on site. The motion to adopt staff findings and recommendations passed 7-1; Chairman Perry cast the lone no vote.
Planning staff summarized the site as the former Applebee’s building at the southeast corner of South Kohler Street and Osborne Avenue and reminded commissioners that the Common Council had previously approved a General Development Plan for a drive‑through car wash at this location. The applicant’s SIP keeps two driveway accesses on Osborne Avenue, removes the existing South Kohler driveway, and retains an easternmost parking row in its current footprint; the applicant requested a BSM to allow more than the code‑maximum parking on site (code maximum noted as 25 spaces; applicant proposes 50).
Staff said the excess parking was acceptable because the site abuts commercial property and is likely to be redeveloped in the future. The plan otherwise meets setback requirements except for a small portion of pavement that slightly encroaches into a five‑foot setback along the east property line; the applicant proposes to use existing trees to meet paved‑area landscaping requirements and requested a BSM to allow street‑frontage plantings to be farther than 10 feet from the right‑of‑way where Public Works has requested no plantings within that right‑of‑way to avoid utility conflicts.
Staff also described building materials and said the applicant requests reductions in required Class‑1 material percentages on two facades (to 43% on the west elevation and 7% on the north/Osborne elevation). Staff recommended approval, noting that the applicant’s use of Nichiha fiber cement panels (a Class‑3 material) and increased landscaping points along Osborne Avenue help compensate for the material reduction.
Applicant representative Peter Schwabe addressed the commission and thanked staff for assistance. During public comment, the applicant’s representative explained the project team’s confidence in the Tommy’s Express membership model and site selection. Commissioner Bulow raised a question about market saturation (noting an existing vacant car wash elsewhere in the city); the applicant explained the franchise family had conducted market studies and believed the product and membership model would be successful at the Keeler site.
Commission member Bulow also asked the applicant to comment on market overlap with an existing facility; the applicant said he could not speak to the other site but that Tommy’s national experience and product model support the proposal. Commissioner Perry stated he viewed the use as a drive‑through and said he generally would not support such a use on a major corridor, which explains his no vote.
The commission approved the SIP with staff‑recommended findings and conditions; because the approval included BSM requests and code waivers (pavement setback encroachment, parking quantity, and reduced Class‑1 facade percentage), those items will be carried into the SIP record and must be satisfied per the conditions set by staff and any final sign‑off processes.
