Title
PLN24-0094- 1310 Central Avenue - Use Permit Amendment - Applicant: Qais Ahmed. Modification of Use Permit PB-12-11 to allow additional operating hours for the existing legal non-conforming gas station as well as sale of packaged foods and non-alcoholic beverages in the existing store. The proposed gas station hours are Monday through Friday from 6:00 A.M. to 10:00 P.M., and Saturday and Sunday from 7:00 A.M. to 8:00 p.m. No change to the operating hours for auto repair services are proposed as part of this application. CEQA Determination: This project is categorically exempt from additional environmental review pursuant to CEQA Guidelines Section 15301 - Existing Facilities
Body
To: Honorable President and Members of the Planning Board
From: Allen Tai, Planning, Building and Transportation Director
BACKGROUND
On February 27, 2024, Qais Ahmed made an application for a use permit to modify the conditions of Use Permit PB-12-11 to allow additional operating hours and sales of a broader mix of convenience items in the small store at the existing Mobil gas station located at 1310 Central Avenue. The existing gas station and auto repair facility have operated continuously at the location for at least 75 years. Zoning records from 1958 show the site was originally zoned Commercial District. The station was operated at that time with no limitation on hours. The property was rezoned in 1974 to R-4 (residential) and therefore became a legal non-conforming use. R-4 zoning allows a range of residential uses as well as institutional uses such as schools, community assembly, libraries, and daycares. The current General Plan land use designation for the property is Medium-Density Residential which supports a wide variety of housing types and some non-residential institutional and administrative uses.
In 1981, the Planning Board approved Use Permit UP-81-6 to reinstate auto repair use on the site. The first limitation on hours for the gas station was introduced in 1992 in exchange for allowing certain additional types of auto repair services. Between 1992 and 2012, numerous applications, extensions and renewals were processed, sometimes slightly amending the mix of products and services and hours of operation attempting to balance business desires with concerns of some of the neighborhood residents.
The gas station and the auto repair use function as separate businesses, with separate operators. The current use permit, PB-12-11 (Exhibit 1), allows the gas station to operate 7am-4pm Monday through Friday and Saturday from 9am-4pm. Sales of non-automotive goods are currently prohibited onsite. The auto repair business is permitted to operate Monday through Friday from 9am to 6pm and Saturday from 9am to 4pm.
There have been two verified instances in the last five years of the fuel pumps being left on after the permitted hours. This enables credit card purchases of fuel while the gas station is ostensibly closed and unattended. The most recent violation was in April 2024 while the current use permit application was under review by city staff. Applicant represents that these instances occur when the gas station attendant forgets to turn off the pumps when leaving at the end of the day. City staff and the applicant mutually agreed to toll the use permit application while the applicant demonstrated a consistent ability to abide by the existing conditions of Use Permit PB-12-11. After one year of complaint-free operations, the proposal to allow additional gas station hours of operation and sales of non-automotive convenience items in the store is moving forward and now before the Planning Board for consideration.
DISCUSSION
Alameda Municipal Code (AMC) Section 30-20 governs nonconforming buildings and uses. AMC 30-20.2 states that if no structural alterations are made, a nonconforming use of a building may, upon approval of a use permit be changed to another nonconforming use of the same or more restricted use classification. No change in use classification is proposed, only modification to the use permit conditions of approval. Applicant’s sales data shows a significant decline in gallons of fuel sold annually since 2018. Some possible factors contributing to this decline include: more fuel efficient vehicles such as hybrids, electric vehicles, and rise of remote work. Given the long term trends of lower annual fuel sales, the proposed additional hours of operation for the gas station will keep the intensity of the nonconforming use in line with its historic use.
The gas station has a difficult time competing with other gas stations that have extended hours of operation and full convenience stores with food, beverage, alcohol and tobacco sales. Allowing for additional hours of operation and the sale of packaged food and drinks while continuing to prohibit the sale of alcohol and tobacco products can help the business compete on a more level playing field. Properties with gas stations that cease operations face significant challenges in finding successful new uses. Two such properties on Oak Street have been vacant and blighted for decades because of the challenging remediation and other regulatory challenges former gas station sites face to be redeveloped.
After considering available information, staff recommend permitting gas station sales from 6am to 10pm Monday through Friday and 7am to 8pm Saturday and Sunday. Additionally, City staff recommend allowing the business to sell a more diverse product mix in the small store where currently only automotive-related goods can be sold. Alcohol, tobacco and nicotine products will continue to be prohibited. The attached Draft Resolution (Exhibit 2) makes the following findings relative to the Use Permit application as required by Alameda Municipal Code 30-21.3:
1. The location of the proposed use is compatible with other land uses in the general neighborhood area, and the project design and size is architecturally, aesthetically, and operationally harmonious with the community and surrounding development.
The existing gas station has operated at the site for many years. The gas station and auto repair businesses complement the nearby Morton Station neighborhood business district. The use of the property has been generally compatible with the adjacent residential uses due to carefully crafted limitations on the hours of operation and the types of services provided at the station if they are adhered to. The current proposed modification would maintain compatibility between the gas station and the neighborhood by not increasing the allowed hours of operation for the onsite auto repair business and prohibiting sales of alcohol and tobacco products.
2. The proposed use will be served by adequate transportation and service facilities including pedestrian, bicycle, and transit facilities.
The property is located at the intersection of three streets that serve citywide circulation needs as described in the City’s Street Classification Index of the General Plan, including State Highway 61, with no barriers to access. AC Transit lines 51A and O stop one block away. The project site is served by continuous existing and under construction bicycle facilities. Therefore, the proposed use is served by adequate transportation and service facilities, including pedestrian, bicycle, and transit facilities.
3. The proposed use, if it complies with all conditions upon which approval is made contingent, will not adversely affect other property in the vicinity and will not have substantial deleterious effects on existing business districts or the local economy.
The proposed additional hours of operation and diversified product selection in the small onsite store will improve the available services to the local residents, reducing the need for people to drive greater distances through the neighborhood to access fuel and convenience items. By continuing to limit the auto repair hours of operation and other conditions of approval, the use will not adversely affect other property in the vicinity. By ensuring the continued viability of the business and avoiding the potential of another shuttered and blighted former gas station property, the use will continue to support the adjacent Morton Station neighborhood business district and the local economy.
4. The proposed use relates favorably to the General Plan.
Despite the underlying General Plan designation being Medium Density Residential, approving this use is consistent with Alameda General Plan Land Use Element goals and policies. Land Use Element action LU-5a calls for “Permit(ing) continuation and re-investment in existing, small, legal nonconforming neighborhood-serving commercial uses in commercial buildings that predate the zoning code.” Approving the use permit modification will support Goal 2 of the Land Use Element to “strengthen and diversify the Alameda business community and economy.
The Draft Resolution carries forward and updates many of the existing conditions of approval that have been in place for years to ensure the businesses at the site operate in a way that minimizes potential impacts on the surrounding neighborhood. In addition to maintaining the existing hours of operation for the light duty auto repair, the sale of alcohol, tobacco and nicotine products will continue to be prohibited. All auto servicing must be conducted within the interior bays of the structure and no cars shall be stored overnight on the property or the adjacent streets. The applicant is required to maintain the premises by addressing graffiti or trash in a timely fashion. If the use is operated in violation of the conditions of approval, the Use Permit may be modified or revoked by the Planning Board pursuant to AMC 30-21.3d. As conditioned, the proposed Use Permit modification will enable this longstanding neighborhood business to provide necessary services and operate in a harmonious manner with the surrounding neighborhood.
PUBLIC NOTICE AND COMMENTS
A notice for this hearing was mailed to property owners and residents within 300 feet of the site, published in local newspapers and posted in public areas near the subject property. Staff has not received any public comments on this proposed project.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
This project is categorically exempt from additional environmental review pursuant to CEQA Guidelines Section 15301 - Existing Facilities. The exceptions to the categorical exemption do not apply.
CLIMATE IMPACT
Amending the use permit conditions for the gas station at 1310 Central Avenue will not impact Climate Change. The project may have some marginal reduction in vehicle miles travelled by enabling some drivers to combine trips or not have to travel as far for fuel or convenience items.
RECOMMENDATION
Hold a public hearing, find the project exempt from further CEQA review, make the required Use Permit findings and approve the project with conditions.
Respectfully Submitted,
Steven Buckley, Secretary to the Planning Board
By,
Brian McGuire, Planner II
Exhibits:
1. PB-12-11
2. Draft Resolution