Planning commission approves 193,469-sq-ft warehouse at 301 Tennessee with added landscaping condition

The Redlands Planning Commission on June 24 approved a conditional use permit and related approvals allowing construction of a 193,469-square-foot warehouse and distribution facility at 301 Tennessee Street, with an added condition directing the developer to increase tree/shade coverage in the rear parking area subject to review and approval by the Development Services director.

The commission voted to adopt Resolution No. 1707, which includes a mitigated negative declaration, a mitigation monitoring and reporting program, approval of Conditional Use Permit No. 1206, Commission Review and Approval No. 975, and a lot merger. The motion passed with three commissioners voting in favor and one opposed.

The project replaces an existing La-Z-Boy-era industrial building with a ~39-foot-tall, modern logistics facility on roughly 10.9 acres. Staff described the proposal as a reduction from an earlier, larger submission: "The reduced project is a 193,469 square foot warehouse ... with 8,000 square feet of office space," staff member Sean Riley told the commission. Riley said the earlier, denied proposal was slightly larger and that the current plan has fewer docks and no cold-storage component than the original submittal.

Prologis, the applicant, said the design prioritizes screening and safety. "Trucks will enter from Tennessee Street, exit onto Kansas, head north to park and then to the freeway," Nicole Torstedt, Prologis, said, noting the company will preserve mature trees and add new drought-tolerant plantings. Environmental consultant Connie Dobreva summarized the city's environmental review, saying the prior mitigated negative declaration covers the current, reduced project and that construction-related mitigation measures and tribal/cultural monitoring requirements are included.

Commissioners and public speakers focused on truck routing, school safety, air quality and enforceability of operational conditions such as idling limits. Redlands Christian Schools principal Chris Winters told commissioners the school supports the project because it should remove truck parking and queuing from State Street near the school: "Taking the trucks off of State Street ... will be a huge help to parents picking up kids," he said. Several other community members, trade representatives and a former councilmember spoke in favor; other commenters urged caution about traffic and cumulative air quality impacts.

Staff said the project must comply with the city’s warehouse ordinance (Ordinance No. 2955), which requires conditional use permits for large warehouses and sets routing, stacking and dock-orientation standards. Riley said the project meets the ordinance’s location requirement (site is within a half mile of a freeway entrance) and that the applicant agreed to limit truck access to Tennessee and Kansas streets. The staff report also adds a project-specific AB 98 requirement: because a house on Kansas Street will be demolished, the applicant must fund construction of two low- to moderate-income units (a 2:1 replacement requirement) within three years of paying the fee.

During deliberations commissioners asked for enforceable mechanisms to limit off‑site impacts. Staff said enforcement would be complaint-driven and routed through code enforcement; if conditions explicitly bind the property owner the city can pursue code-enforcement remedies. The commission added a condition directing staff and the applicant to increase shade-producing trees in the rear parking/vehicle area, with the final landscaping plan to be reviewed and approved by the Development Services director.

The motion to approve was made by Commissioner Stanson and seconded by Commissioner Wells. The vote as recorded in the hearing was: Stanson — yes; Wells — yes; Vice Chair Inslee — opposed; Commissioner Elliott — yes. The resolution and conditions of approval, as amended on the record to add the additional landscaping requirement, are included in the project file.

The project is subject to a Mitigated Negative Declaration previously prepared for an earlier version of the project; staff advised the commission that no recirculation of the MND was required because the reduced project did not introduce new or substantially different environmental effects. Mitigation measures included monitoring for tribal cultural resources, archaeological procedures, geotechnical measures and construction-phase air-quality controls.

Next steps: the applicant will submit final construction plans and a building permit application, address the mitigation monitoring program, and provide the landscaping revisions for Development Services director review. The AB 98 housing replacement payments and the lot merger must be completed as part of the building-permit phase schedule outlined in the conditions of approval.

The commission’s action focuses on the discretionary findings required for the conditional use permit and commission review; commissioners noted that broader policy questions about warehouse locations were previously resolved by the City Council when it adopted the warehouse ordinance and the map of eligible sites.

The public record for this item includes the staff report, the MND and mitigation monitoring program, socioeconomic cost-benefit materials, traffic study exhibits and written correspondence received prior to the hearing. The developer provided renderings, site plans, truck-routing exhibits and a landscape plan.