Planning commission approves Del Monte Center landscaping plan and 24‑hour Club Studio with restricted signage

The Monterey Planning Commission voted to recommend the City Council amend the Del Monte Center shopping‑center plan and approved permits for a landscaping and outdoor‑amenity program across the center, and separately approved a use permit and sign permits for a 24‑hour fitness and wellness tenant proposed for the former Macy’s furniture store.

Staff described the Del Monte Center proposal as a sitewide landscaping and amenity improvement across a roughly 46.75‑acre center comprising 16 buildings (about 642,980 square feet). The plan would refurbish the central pedestrian promenade with cobblestone, seating, umbrellas, outdoor sofas, a refurbished fountain, natural‑material play elements and new planting. Staff said 18 trees (including Prunus and Platanus species) would be removed and replaced at a 4:1 ratio (72 replacements) with local and adaptable species such as coast live oak and Monterey pine.

Applicant Stuart McDonald (Federal Realty) and landscape designer Mike Myers (Lifescapes International) presented design intent emphasizing water‑conserving planting (removing turf and adding synthetic turf in limited dog‑friendly pockets), and a mixed palette of canopy, evergreen and flowering trees. Myers said lighting would be shielded and dimmable and that accent lighting would be used to highlight trunks and sculptures, not to create widespread uplighting.

Several commissioners pressed staff and the applicant on dark‑sky impacts and ambient glow visible from adjacent neighborhoods; staff noted the city has not adopted a formal dark‑sky ordinance and pointed to an existing condition requiring Planning Division review and approval of the final lighting plan to ensure fixtures are shielded and downward facing. The commission asked the applicant to work with staff on limiting accent lights during off‑business hours; the applicant offered dimming capabilities.

On the Del Monte tenant application, staff presented a proposal to convert a roughly 38,767‑square‑foot former furniture store into a Club Studio fitness and wellness facility with strength and cardio areas, studios, recovery/med spa services, a juice bar and associated site and façade modifications. The use would operate 24 hours a day with a minimum of two employees on site at all times; staff recommended conditions to contain noise, require continuous staffing, and limit each proposed halo‑lit wall sign to 50 square feet located within the existing fascia.

Applicants and tenant representatives said they accept staff conditions but requested flexibility to enlarge a façade element to create a clearer entrance and to accommodate larger signage. Commissioners and staff discussed sign size, internal illumination, and whether the façade should be modified; several commissioners expressed a preference for keeping the existing fascia and limiting internally lit signage. The commission approved the Del Monte SC plan amendment recommendation and approved the Club Studio use and sign permits with staff conditions limiting each sign to 50 square feet, requiring halo illumination parameters, and requiring staff review of lighting placement and hours where necessary.

Both Del Monte items passed on roll call; commissioners asked staff to work with the applicant to refine lighting hours and to consider accent‑lighting curfews while preserving safety lighting for public circulation and parking.