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Planning commission clears Raising Cane’s drive‑through at Pacific Commons with conditions
Summary
Fremont Planning Commission approved a 3,466‑sq‑ft Raising Cane’s with a dual‑lane drive‑through at 43330 Pacific Commons Boulevard, accepting staff traffic and design findings; the applicant said the restaurant will be all‑electric with four EV chargers and operational plans to manage drive‑through queuing.
The Fremont Planning Commission on Feb. 26 approved a Raising Cane’s restaurant with a dual‑lane drive‑through at 43330 Pacific Commons Boulevard.
Planner Clarissa Flores told the commission the proposal requires a conditional use permit for the drive‑through, discretionary design review and tree removals. The project would demolish an existing roughly 16,000‑square‑foot building and replace it with a 3,466‑square‑foot restaurant, a 1,000‑square‑foot outdoor patio, 67 vehicle parking spaces and bicycle parking. The proposal calls for removal of 28 trees with 23 replacements and payment of in‑lieu fees for the remainder. Staff recommended the commission find the project consistent with applicable zoning and CEQA exemptions and approve the permits with conditions.
Lester Tucker, the applicant’s entitlement consultant, said the restaurant will be all‑electric to comply with Fremont’s Climate Ready Now Plan and will install four EV chargers with additional spaces EV‑ready. ‘‘This is a kind of a complicated slide… the project is 100% compliant with all the development and design standards in the city. In fact, it exceeds most of them,’’ Tucker said.
Commissioners focused questions on traffic and queueing at the drive‑through, especially given nearby high‑volume businesses. The applicant cited required traffic studies that did not show a change in level of service at the nearby signals and said the on‑site queue can hold the proposed vehicles without blocking parking aisles; the applicant also described operational mitigations such as coning plans, deploying staff to manage circulation and, if necessary during openings, using off‑duty officers.
Commissioner Ye moved to accept staff’s recommendation; Commissioner Lou seconded. The commission voted 6–0 with one commissioner absent to approve the project. The action is final unless appealed to the City Council within 10 calendar days.
Next steps: The applicant will proceed to satisfy any conditions of approval and obtain building permits; staff will require implementation of landscaping, tree replacement or payment of in‑lieu fees, and adherence to operational plans to limit traffic impacts.
