Planning Commission directs staff to draft hybrid site plan for Central Coast Smog after years of nonconforming outdoor storage

The El Paso de Robles City Planning Commission on May 27 directed staff to prepare a final site plan to amend Conditional Use Permit (CUP) 87‑006 for Central Coast Smog / Otto at 639 Creston Road, after prolonged nonconforming vehicle storage, the installation of a six‑foot perimeter fence without approvals, and repeated attempts by the owner to bring the site into compliance.

City planner Darren Nash summarized the staff position: the site’s original CUP (1987) authorized a limited auto‑repair use within a defined footprint, but grading, expanded vehicle storage and a new perimeter fence have created a nonconforming outdoor storage yard that is not permitted in the C‑2 zone. Nash said staff prepared an alternate site plan to reduce the fenced area, add parking and landscaping to improve neighborhood compatibility and meet parking and setback requirements.

Nash told commissioners the Design Review Committee reviewed both the applicant’s as‑built site plan and the staff suggested plan on March 17 and recommended the staff approach as the better path to conformity.…