Planning commission approves corner car wash, drive‑through and parcel split despite neighborhood objections

The Yuba City Planning Commission voted 3‑1‑1 to approve Use Permit 2404, Variance 2401 and Tentative Parcel Map 2401 to allow a Tommy’s car wash, a quick‑serve restaurant with a drive‑thru and the subdivision of a 2.02‑acre lot at the southeast corner of Calusa Avenue and Olive Street.

Chairperson Sillman read the motion to adopt the staff resolution and move the project forward; the motion passed on a roll call tally of three votes in favor (Commissioners Campbell, Sandhu and Chairperson Sillman), one opposing vote (Commissioner Noor) and one abstention (Vice Chairperson Brock Brookman). The commission’s approval adopted a mitigated negative declaration prepared for Environmental Assessment EA‑2406 and included conditions and mitigation measures recommended in the staff report.

Staff described the site as a 2.02‑acre, irregularly shaped C‑3 commercial parcel at 590 Calusa Avenue (the former Waffle Barn site) and summarized three related entitlements to be considered together: use permit 2404 for a quick‑serve restaurant with a drive‑thru; a variance to reduce the code‑required minimum distance between a car wash and a residential district from 100 feet to approximately 10 feet (the variance pertains to vacuum hose locations); and tentative parcel map 2401 to divide the lot into three commercial parcels. The staff presentation said the previously prepared traffic analysis showed fewer projected trips under the current proposal than a formerly contemplated gas‑station scheme and that staff added conditions to mitigate potential left‑turn conflicts and ensure on‑site queuing so vehicles do not block Calusa Avenue or Olive Street.

Project representatives said they had coordinated with city departments and Caltrans during design. Julio Tenejero of Milestone Associates, the project designer, said the “noise study did show that the noise of, actually, that corridor of Colusa is already making the levels are pretty high already, but we are within the noise ordinance.” Developer Ryan Rogers, president of Lakeview Petroleum, described the site as a long‑standing blighted parcel and said the project team would invest in masonry walling, landscaping and upkeep. Rogers said the car wash’s blowers and primary motors would be located farther from residences and that the vacuum hose locations are the portion of the operation that triggered the requested variance.

Multiple residents and nearby property owners opposed the variance and raised concerns at the public hearing about noise, trash, pests, security and property access. David Duncan, a neighbor, said, “A 6 foot wall is not gonna do anything to prevent the noise,” and asked that a taller wall be required if the variance were granted. Resident Erin Dam argued the project was “too close to the residential homes” and called the variance “an insult to the residents of the neighborhood”; she also asked the commission to reconsider the CEQA analysis for potential air quality and noise impacts. Other residents asked for guarantees about the location of the refuse enclosure, employee parking and the hours of operation.

Staff and project representatives responded: the approved operating hours for the car wash are limited by condition to 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.; the applicant provided a preliminary landscape plan and a CMU enclosure for refuse adjacent to an existing Java Detour parcel; employee parking was shown on the site plan; and the developer agreed to a follow‑up noise study required prior to operation to confirm mitigation effectiveness. Project consultant Stephanie (project representative) stated the noise study found the project’s net contribution to ambient noise would be “less than 1 decibel” and noted the study modeled the worst‑case assumption that every vacuum and source runs continuously during operating hours.

The commission’s motion adopted the mitigated negative declaration, approved tentative parcel map 2401 to create three commercial parcels, approved use permit 2404 for a quick‑serve restaurant with a drive‑thru, and approved variance 2401 reducing the minimum distance between the nearest vacuum hose and a residence from 100 feet to approximately 10 feet. Chairperson Sillman also read appeal instructions into the record: a party dissatisfied with the decision may file an appeal to the City Council within 10 days accompanied by the required fee.