Rohnert Park council pauses decision on Walmart expansion amid residents' safety and noise concerns

Rohnert Park ' The City Council on July 8 continued consideration of an appeal of the Planning Commission's May 8 approval of a conditional use permit amendment for a 4,969-square-foot interior expansion of the Walmart Neighborhood Market at 901 Golf Course Drive and a plan that would relocate and add on-site curbside pickup spaces.

Alli Judicy, the city's director of development services, told the council staff recommended denying the appeal and upholding the Planning Commission's approval, noting the project was found consistent with the municipal code and categorically exempt from CEQA under State CEQA Guidelines section 15301 for work on an existing facility. The application would add employee facilities and interior pharmacy upgrades and relocate online pickup spaces; the applicant proposed 17 pickup bays near the south side of the building.

Neighbors and the appellant, Bess McKay, urged the council to overturn the Planning Commission's approval. McKay told the council she supported the store but opposed the pickup relocation, calling the proposed area “the second-most-congested traffic area in the shopping center” and arguing it would increase risk to pedestrians and children walking to nearby schools. "We're not against Walmart making improvements inside the store," said resident Antonio Mata, "but moving online pickup to the back next to our homes is what's concerning us." (Resident testimony is taken from public comment delivered at the July 8 hearing.)

Todd Williams, counsel for Walmart, and Jacob Glaze of Kimley-Horn, the applicant's traffic and noise consultant, said the project is largely an interior reorganization of existing retail space and not new construction. Williams noted the store has operated at the location since 2014 and said scheduled pickup windows are intended to regulate vehicle arrivals; Kimley-Horn told the council the project would increase peak online pickup trips modestly (staff packet cited a projected peak of roughly 22 pickup trips) and that the noise study modeled a roughly 1.7-decibel increase, below a 3 dB threshold that consultants called "barely perceptible." "Walmart takes its commitment to being a good neighbor very seriously," Williams said.

Residents disputed those findings and described what they said were persistent operational issues: trucks and third-party vendors arriving or idling outside approved hours, semi-trailers staging in residential-facing alleys, recurring loud beeping and refrigeration noise in early mornings, and localized sewer and rodent problems reported by neighbors. Betty Epley, who lives adjacent to the plaza, said a recent sewer-related shutdown and a rise in rats raised public-health concerns. Don Jenkins, a longtime resident and commercial driver, warned big rigs would have tight turning and maneuvering space if pickup and truck staging overlap.

Council members pressed staff and the applicant on specific mitigations: limiting delivery or staging to defined hours, stricter anti-idling enforcement and signage, route controls to keep large trucks off small residential streets, and physical or operational measures (gates, controlled access, relocation of the pharmacy or pickup to a less-congested west-side area). Staff confirmed the Planning Commission had added a delivery-hour restriction at the May hearing and that the current online pickup window in materials is 7 a.m. to 10 p.m.; staff also confirmed the project was found consistent with the zoning ordinance.

After extended questioning and public testimony, Council Member Adams moved to continue the appeal so staff and the applicant could craft additional conditions addressing the council's safety, hours, idling and enforcement concerns. The motion passed unanimously (5-0). The council asked staff to work with the applicant on a package of operational commitments and conditions and return the item for decision at a future meeting.

What's next: the council did not decide the appeal on July 8; staff will negotiate follow-up conditions with the applicant and bring revised documents back to council for action. The Planning Commission's underlying approval of CUP PLUP 24-004 remains in effect for procedural purposes until the council acts.

Sources: Staff presentation and packet, testimony from the appellant and residents, and public statements from the applicant's legal and technical team at the July 8 Rohnert Park City Council meeting.