Walnut Creek design panel backs Taco Bell study session but urges saving trees, rethinking tower and circulation

The Walnut Creek Design Review Commission on June 4 reviewed plans for a new Taco Bell with a dual‑lane drive‑through at 1960 Tice Valley Boulevard in the Rossmore Shopping Center and offered a positive recommendation to the Planning Commission while urging changes to preserve trees, reduce visual impact and improve site circulation.

The commission’s comments asked the applicant to pursue alternatives to removing two large sycamore/London plane trees the neighbors and several commissioners described as screening for the adjacent single‑family neighborhood; to reconsider the tower, color palette and illuminated signage; and to prioritize intuitive circulation and preserve more parking rather than remove additional trees. Commissioners said they would not support removing trees that meet the city’s protected‑tree definition.

Staff and applicant presentations described the project as an approximately…