Council overturns Planning Commission denial, approves 3881 Center Avenue site plan with conditions

The Norco City Council voted 4-0 to overturn a Planning Commission denial and approve Site Plan 2025-02, a proposal to build a 1,250-square-foot office at 3881 Center Avenue, after a public hearing and detailed technical review.

Planning staff told the council the Planning Commission denied the project on Feb. 11, 2026 mainly because of building-code exceptions and site constraints. Planning staff recommended overturning the denial and approving the project with conditions. Erica Woods, the city clerk presenting the item, summarized the application history, including requested plan revisions and a February 18 appeal by the project designer.

Building Official Stefan described the site as tight — about 48 feet, 9 inches wide — and walked through required elements (a 20-foot parking stall, a 25-foot drive aisle, a 3-foot accessible path, bollards and a CMU wall) that collectively approach the parcel width. He said the code permits an exception reducing a sidewalk clear width from 48 inches to 36 inches where an enforcing agency finds an unreasonable hardship, and he described how bollards and other measures could meet the intent of separation from vehicles where strict code compliance is infeasible.

Designer Fred Cohen of CJC Design told the council the revised plan adds an ADA-accessible path of travel to the building and that earlier building-official guidance had differed; Cohen said the team redesigned the project after the Planning Commission requested changes and hoped for final approval. Several Norco residents and a sheriff's deputy spoke in favor of the project during public comment.

Council discussion focused on specific conditions: ensuring at least 5% landscape coverage (the plan currently shows about 10.5%), clarifying right-of-way improvements (condition 29), requiring that no outdoor storage be allowed — explicitly including vehicles and equipment — and refining window and building elevations to match the city's agrarian design expectations. Council members also discussed whether to require an 8-foot block wall for privacy and determined staff should work with the applicant to find a structurally and financially feasible solution.

Member Bosch moved to approve the project with the list of conditions discussed; Member Newton seconded. A proposed waiver of the applicant's appeal fee was raised and then rescinded. The city clerk called a roll call; the motion passed 4-0 with one councilmember recused. The council directed staff and the applicant to finalize the technical details during plan check and implement the agreed conditions.

The decision overturns the Planning Commission denial and approves the project subject to the council's conditions and standard plan-check review.