San Leandro council advances zoning package tightening tobacco retail rules, limiting oversized vehicle parking

City staff asked the San Leandro City Council to introduce two ordinances and adopt a resolution that would change multiple sections of the city's zoning and municipal code, including new limits on tobacco retailing, a repeal of the city's all‑electric reach code after a federal appeals decision, a citywide restriction on oversized vehicle parking and new rules for boats and waterways.

Planning manager Whelan Lee told the council the tobacco provisions would apply prospectively to new tobacco retailers while allowing properly permitted existing retailers to continue operating as legal nonconforming uses. The proposed tobacco limits include a 10% cap on gross floor area devoted to tobacco products, a maximum 10 linear feet of display space for tobacco, a cap of 25% of receipts attributable to tobacco, and a requirement that tobacco products and signage not be visible from the exterior of the store. Staff said those limits are intended to prevent accessory tobacco sales from evolving into full‑service smoke shops.

Lee also said a 2023 decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit requires repeal of San Leandro's local all‑electric reach code that had banned natural‑gas hookups in new construction; that repeal is part of the package before council.

Business groups and convenience store owners urged changes and clearer language. "This ordinance discriminates against new convenience stores," Elizabeth Graham, CEO of the California Fuels and Convenience Alliance, told the council, arguing the draft would prevent new gas‑station convenience stores from obtaining tobacco licenses and cut a critical revenue stream. Multiple franchisee and convenience store speakers pressed staff to clarify whether existing tobacco retail licenses could be transferred when a business at a location is sold and whether pharmacies or drugstores are affected.

Planning staff responded that existing tobacco retail licenses that were properly granted are not at risk of cancellation and that a buyer at a location where tobacco has been legally sold would be "eligible to apply" for a tobacco retail license under the same criteria. Staff and the police department also clarified that a business license may transfer but individual tobacco retail licenses are issued to the operator and would require the new operator to meet the city's licensing criteria.

On oversized vehicles, the proposed code would limit on‑street parking for certain oversized vehicles to two hours and give staff authority to post notice, abate, or perform emergency removal where necessary. Speakers representing local businesses described long‑running encampments of RVs and abandoned vehicles in industrial corridors and backed enforcement; homelessness service providers warned that stricter on‑street rules without a safe‑parking alternative would destabilize people living in RVs and urged the city to create safe‑parking options first.

The package also would expand municipal authority to regulate anchoring, living aboard and beaching of vessels in San Leandro waterways except for permitted special events and allow notices to abate or emergency removal for violations after enforcement steps.

After public comment and extended council questioning, the council voted to advance the package. The council introduced the two ordinances and adopted the related resolution to amend zoning and municipal codes and to lift the temporary tobacco moratorium; the item passed unanimously.