Design review commissioners back Joy Bound daycare with requests on wayfinding, acoustics and lighting

Summer Gill, senior planner for Walnut Creek City, opened a study session on March 18 for Joy Bound’s proposed 12,577-square-foot animal daycare at 2890 Mitchell Drive, describing the item as a design review study session and a potential recommendation to the Planning Commission.

The project would expand operations of the nonprofit formerly known as the ARF Animal Rescue Foundation and add a new building with outdoor exercise and training yards, a covered trash enclosure and additional parking on roughly 1.5 acres of a larger campus. "Tonight the project before you is a new 12,577 square foot animal daycare building," Gill said, presenting the site plan and program.

Applicant and design-team members introduced materials and circulation. Greg Booth, the project architect with JPA Strategies Group, said the design uses a cement-stucco primary finish in a light/cream tone with beige and brown accents, dark-framed windows and a recessed metal-panel entry designed to complement existing campus buildings. The site design keeps the existing drive aisle and locates new parking stalls near the entry; the team reported 207 total stalls on site where 197 are required and said the project would also meet City development standards for height and setbacks.

Staff noted several regulatory and technical points. The application proposes removal of 13 landscape trees (three already approved by the city arborist for removal due to poor health or species/size) and planting of 55 new trees across the site. Signage shown in the renderings would total about 61 square feet for three signs, which staff said falls within the City’s sign ordinance. Gill also told commissioners the project "is subject to environmental review" and that the City is awaiting a traffic study and noise information to complete that environmental determination; staff stated the project does not qualify for an infill exemption because the overall campus exceeds the 10-acre threshold.

Commissioners focused their questions on visibility, campus identity and neighbor impacts. Vice Chair Commissioner Newsom raised concerns about first-time visitors finding the correct building and recommended stronger wayfinding and clearer building identity across the campus. In response, Cheryl McKenna, the Joy Bound chief financial officer, said the team would incorporate wayfinding and confirmed it will be included in the final submittal: "We are definitely incorporating wayfinding into this right now," McKenna said.

Noise and acoustics were also a recurring topic. Commissioners asked the applicants to confirm materials and noise-reduction measures for kennels and exterior exercise yards; the architect described perimeter CMU (concrete masonry unit) walls with plaster finish and berming to screen dogs and reduce sound transfer to adjacent properties. Commissioners recommended that acoustical performance of those walls be documented as part of the environmental review.

Other design and technical clarifications discussed included: - Fencing and yards: the team proposed four smaller exercise yards rather than one large yard, with full-height CMU walls on the outside edges and vinyl-coated fencing inside the yards to match existing site conditions. - Lighting: the applicant said proposed 25-foot pole lights will match existing campus poles and include shields and cutoffs to avoid off-site spill. - Stormwater and drainage: civil engineering team members said roof and surface drains will discharge to bio-retention facilities and stormwater treatment facilities; final drainage paths (overland vs. underground) remain under design review. - Security gates: roadway gates will remain open during the day and close at night; applicants said they plan to coordinate access with the fire department and include knox boxes as required.

Commissioners expressed broad support for the project as an institutional use that continues Joy Bound’s rescue, training and community services, while requesting specific follow-up: stronger wayfinding and campus identity; confirmation of acoustical wall performance for the exercise yards; submission of cutoff/shielded lighting cut sheets; and details on stormwater and landscape establishment. The commission reached consensus on those items and accepted staff’s recommendation to forward design feedback to the Planning Commission for further review.

Next steps: the application remains under environmental review pending traffic and noise studies; the design team will incorporate commissioner feedback (wayfinding, acoustics, lighting details, landscape plans) into the next submittal and staff will proceed with the environmental determination and Planning Commission referral.

All direct quotations in this article are taken from the March 18 design review study session transcript.