REPORT TO COUNCIL
SUBJECT
Title
Public Hearing: Reconsideration of the Council “No-Action” on the Appeal (PLN25-00362) of the Planning Commission’s Denial of a Modification to a Conditional Use Permit (PLN24-00392) to Modify Existing Conditions of Approval for the Existing Subaru Dealership Located at 3225 Stevens Creek Boulevard
Report
SUMMARY
On October 7, 2025, the City Council (Council) discussed the Subaru Dealership appeal of an August 20, 2025 Planning Commission decision. At the meeting, the Council heard the staff presentation, the applicant presentation, and public comments, and after the close of public comment, the Council made a motion to approve the Conditional Use Permit. The motion, however, did not receive the majority vote necessary to pass and no alternate motion was made; the legal effect of this was to leave standing the Planning Commission’s August 20th decision to deny the request. The City Council also requested that if the matter was heard again at a future meeting, Mission Trail, the waste hauling company, would provide more information regarding waste pick up on Stevens Creek Boulevard vs. Cecil Avenue.
At the next regular Council meeting, October 21, 2025, in accordance with Council Policy Manual Policy 042, the applicant’s attorney requested a reconsideration of the Council “non-action” at the previous meeting. Council approved this request in a 6-1 vote.
The item was scheduled for the next feasible City Council meeting date, and the applicant is again requesting that the City Council modify the existing Conditions of Approval, P6 and P19.
Since the October 21, 2025, City Council meeting, City staff have had further direct communications with Mission Trail waste hauling, as well as a site visit to assess the conditions.
Based upon Mission Trail’s assessment, it appears that Subaru’s required waste bins cannot be serviced from Cecil Avenue due to the inability of Mission Trail’s waste vehicles to enter the rear of the Subaru dealership property. Based on this updated information, staff is now recommending denial of the applicant’s requested Modification to the Conditional Use Permit and keep the waste haul with access off Stevens Creek Boulevard.
BACKGROUND
On October 21, 2025, John Domingue (“Applicant and Attorney”) on behalf of Monar LLC (“Subaru Owner”) submitted a request for the City Council to reconsider their October 7, 2025, action on the Appeal of the Planning Commission’s denial of a modification to a Conditional Use Permit (PLN25-00362). The request is in accordance with City of Santa Clara City Council Policy Manual, Policy 042 Reconsideration of Council Action.
The Site
The subject site, currently occupied by the Subaru Dealership (“Subaru”), is located on the north side of Stevens Creek Boulevard. The property has a street frontage that faces Stevens Creek Boulevard, adjacent to other commercial uses, and backs onto Cecil Avenue, across from single-family residences. The Vicinity Map can be found in Attachment 1.
Prior Actions
2016 City Council Action
In 2016, the City Council approved the construction of a new dealership with Conditions of Approval to alleviate potential impacts from its operation to the abutting single-family residences on Cecil Avenue. The approval included Conditions P6 and P19, which limited the waste pick up to Stevens Creek Boulevard, but since that approval and construction of the dealership, the waste has been picked up next door at the Lincoln Dealership (3155 Stevens Creek Boulevard) on Cecil Avenue.
Operational Complaints by Neighbors and Remedies Proposed by Owner
Staff have received ongoing complaints from residents on Cecil Avenue regarding Subaru’s non-compliance with their waste removal conditions. Code Enforcement staff have responded to resident complaints and, where it was determined to be a valid complaint, code enforcement procedures were followed and violation letter was sent with options to remedy the violation (Attachment 10). Staff have also been engaged with residents throughout the appeal process by taking phone calls, responding to emails, and providing explanations of the process and corrections (See examples of email responses in Attachment 11). Staff has also reached out via phone to the Subaru dealership owner to make him aware of on-going complaints from the neighborhood.
One of the options was for the Applicant to apply to modify their Conditional Use Permit (“CUP”) pursuant to Santa Clara City Code (“SCCC”) Chapter 18.150, Permit Modifications and Revocations. This Applicant selected this option due to the limited availability on the site for trash pick-up and the safety concerns on Stevens Creek Boulevard. On September 9, 2024, the applicant filed an application to modify the Conditional Use Permit (File No. PLN24-00392). They requested to allow the operation of the existing roll-up doors during business hours to facilitate solid waste and recycling collection from Cecil Avenue by modifying Condition P6 and P19. The adopted Condition P6 and P19 that would need to be modified to accommodate the dealership’s request currently reads as follows:
“P6: Any pedestrian and roll-up doors opening onto Cecil Avenue shall remain closed during operation, shall be used for emergency ingress/egress only, and shall not be used as a primary entrance to or exit from the site, except as allowed for oil/fluid removal and supply, consistent with Condition P19 below. The roll-up door between the service area and Cecil Avenue shall remain closed at all times, except in the event of emergency ingress/egress needs. The roll-up door for the service area that faces east shall remain closed except for vehicle ingress/egress in order to minimize noise disturbance to nearby neighbors, consistent with the Illingworth & Rodkin noise study recommendations dated July 18, 2016. Prior to approval of plans for Architectural Review, plans shall be revised to label doors opening to Cecil Avenue consistent with this condition, and plans shall note that signage will be posted on-site to inform employees and other users which doors are to remain closed during operations”.
“P19: No loading, unloading, deliveries, trash/recycling pick-up, vehicle staging, vehicle parking, vehicle/site service, or other site function shall occur on Cecil Avenue or other nearby residential streets, with the exception of oil and other fluid extraction and supply to the business may occur on Cecil Avenue between the hours of 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Oil and other fluid extraction and supply on Cecil Avenue shall occur no more than one time per week. The business operator shall maintain a log of activity for the oil and other fluid extraction and supply. Said log shall be furnished to the City upon request.”
2025 Planning Commission Consideration of Modifications
At the publicly noticed meeting of May 21, 2025, the Planning Commission (“Commission”) reviewed the request. The Commission discussed whether the change in waste pick-up would generate additional traffic and noise on Cecil Avenue. Staff stated that the waste management company, Mission Trail, is already driving waste trucks through Cecil Avenue to collect commercial and residential waste and would use the same trucks to collect the waste for Subaru. The Commission voted to determine that the request was exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (“CEQA”) per CEQA Guidelines Section 15305 (Class 5 - Minor Alterations in Land Use Limitations) with a vote of 7-0, but voted to deny the modification to the CUP (5-2, Commissioners Cherukuru and Huang dissenting) due to the inability of the applicant to provide proof that no additional traffic would be generated with the requested changes. The Commission directed staff to prepare a resolution of denial and to bring the resolution back to the Commission. Staff brought the resolution of denial to the Planning Commission on August 13, 2025, and it was adopted with a vote of 5-1-0-1 (Commissioner Huang dissenting, Commissioner Bhatnagar absent). The Staff Report for the May 21, 2025, Planning Commission hearing is available as Attachment 3.
2025 Appeal of Planning Commission’s Decision
On August 20, 2025, the applicant’s attorney filed a timely appeal of the denial on August 20, 2025 (Attachment 2), and on October 7, 2025, the appeal was heard by the City Council within 60 days of filing in accordance with SCCC 18.144.030. In the appeal application, the applicant stated that finding “D” of the 2016 CUP resolution, which relates to the impact of the design of the neighboring properties, can no longer be made, and requested the Council to overturn the Commission’s decision.
October 2025 City Council Meetings
On October 7, 2025, the City Council was unable to act on the appeal as the motions to approve the Conditional Use Permit did not receive the majority vote necessary to pass and no alternate motions were made; the legal effect of this was leave in place the Planning Commission’s decision to deny the request The Staff Report for the Council Hearing on October 7, 2025, is available as Attachment 3.
2025 Reconsideration Request
At the next regular Council meeting, on October 21, 2025, in accordance with the City of Santa Clara City Council Policy Manual Policy 042, the applicant’s attorney requested a reconsideration of the Council action. Council approved this request in a 6-1 vote. Following the meeting, Staff worked with the applicant’s attorney and Mission Trail on setting a date for the reconsideration hearing that worked for all parties.
During this time, staff was in discussions with Mission Trail, and it was communicated that Subaru’s required waste bins cannot be serviced from Cecil Avenue; Subaru’s service levels cannot be reduced; and bins need to be serviced via Stevens Creek Boulevard, which is discussed in greater detail later in this report.
DISCUSSION
At the May 21, 2025, Planning Commission meeting, staff supported the applicant’s request to modify the CUP to facilitate solid waste and recycling collection from Cecil Avenue. At the time of entitlement review, City staff was coordinating with Mission Trail and it was determined that trash pickup on Cecil Avenue was the most appropriate location due to the safety of Mission Trail employees. Based on this, a modification of an existing permit was appropriate under the Santa Clara Zoning Code when the “circumstances under which the permit or approval was granted have been changed to an extent that one or more of the findings that justified the original approval can no longer be made, and the public health, safety, and general welfare require the modification or revocation.” The circumstance that staff stated had changed since the original approval was that Finding “D” of the 2016 resolution. Finding “D” was that the dealership “is in keeping with the purposes and intent of the Zoning Code, in that auto sales and services, including vehicle preparation are permitted uses” in the applicable zone, and because the dealership “is designed such that it does not adversely impact the surrounding areas.” Part of that design was the condition requiring that the roll-up doors fronting Cecil Avenue remain closed most of the time. At the time of the Planning Commission meeting, it was determined that conditions of approval were no longer necessary to avoid impacting the surrounding uses because:
• The solid waste and recycling collection restriction under Planning Division conditions P6 and P19 creates an unreasonable constraint to the site’s waste management operation.
• The constraint is unique to the site as similar properties along Stevens Creek and abutting Cecil Avenue are allowed to get their solid waste and recycling collected from Cecil Avenue for recent projects.
• Mission Trail operates its collection trucks on Cecil Avenue currently, and modifying these conditions will not generate additional noise pollution as Mission Trail is already picking up commercial waste on Cecil Avenue.
• Mission Trail, through the applicant, stated that waste collections on Stevens Creek are discouraged because it may pose a safety hazard for their staff.
Therefore, City staff recommended approval of modifying the Conditional Use Permit (Attachment 7) as the request would encourage traffic distribution that maximizes the efficiency of the existing roadway network and minimizes disruption of traffic flow from truck traffic.
During the Planning Commission hearing, the applicant team was unable to answer several of the Planning Commission’s questions on employee parking, Mission Trail waste pick-up routes (number of pick-up days per week), and whether other commercial properties were getting their trash collected on Cecil Avenue. The Planning Commission heard public comments from four members of the public who live in the vicinity of the project site and their concerns about how the Subaru dealership has not been a “good neighbor”. Commissioners asked Staff questions about whether there are alternatives to the request. Staff stated at the time that any alternative to the request would not be preferred by Mission Trail, as they are discouraging waste collection on Stevens Creek Boulevard, as it endangers their employees due to high volume and speed of traffic.
October 7, 2025 City Council Appeal Hearing
Staff respectfully disagreed with the Planning Commission’s determination and recommended approval of the CUP modification in the October 7, 2025 Staff Report to the City Council (Attachment 3). Staff concurred with Mission Trail that Stevens Creek Boulevard was not the best place for trash collection, not only for worker safety, but also because bike lanes will be installed on Stevens Creek Boulevard in the future, which will cause conflict in the right of way between future cyclists and the waste trucks. The Council asked staff what administrative process Subaru would need to follow to get waste collected on Stevens Creek Boulevard. Staff responded that Subaru would need to request that a portion of their front curb be painted red by Public Works to allow the waste containers to be staged before pick-up. Council was unable to act on the issue, and the Planning Commission's decision of denial stood.
Reconsideration
The City Council is now hearing this reconsideration of their previous action on October 7, 2025. During a hearing on a reconsidered item, the Council typically only considers new evidence and facts not presented previously, or a claim of error in applying the facts. However, in this case the Council took no action at the last hearing, rather than affirmatively voting to deny the permit. The Council can independently exercise its authority to affirm, affirm in part, vacate, modify or reverse the Planning Commission decision.
Since the October 21, 2025 City Council meeting, staff have been diligently working to coordinate meetings with Department of Public Works and Mission Trail. Additionally due to Super Bowl LX, Mission Trail’s earliest availability to attend an in person hearing was February 24. Therefore, the item was noticed for the February 24 City Council public hearing.
In this matter, City staff does not support the applicant’s request for trash pickup on Cecil Avenue, since the October Council hearing, staff has met with Mission Trail on site and found that Subaru’s required waste bins are not serviceable from Cecil Avenue due to the inability of Mission Trail’s waste vehicles to enter the rear of the property. Mission Trail’s commercial waste vehicles need at least 30 feet of clearance to service their bins, which is less than what the Subaru dealership has in its parking garage. Mission Trail in addition would not allow their bins to be touched by their customers due to liability issues; therefore, Subaru cannot use a forklift or other heavy equipment to move the bins onto Cecil Avenue. Mission Trail also does not support a reduction of service to this property as they are currently servicing them three days a week and the bins are at capacity each time they are being serviced. Staff has compiled answers to all the questions that the City Councilmembers asked on the October 7,2025 hearing to staff. See Attachment 9 for the list of questions and answers.
Based on the additional information from Mission Trail, City staff recommends that the Planning Commission’s decision to deny the CUP be affirmed with the requirement that the dealership will get their waste service picked up on-site from the uncovered portion of their area fronting Stevens Creek Boulevard where it was originally approved. This will require the removal of five uncovered parking spaces. To minimize the changes to the approved Use Permit, City staff is no longer requesting modifications to Conditions P8 (which would have added signage directing employees to park on site) or P20 (which would have further limited the permitted hours for the on-site portable generator for power washing vehicles).
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
The proposed request is categorically exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) per CEQA Guidelines Section 15305 (Class 5 - Minor Alterations in Land Use Limitations), which applies to minor alterations in the land use limitations if it does not change the density or land use. The proposal involves changing a condition in the Conditions of Approval of the CUP.
FISCAL IMPACT
There is no fiscal impact to the City for processing the requested application other than administrative time and expenses typically covered by processing fees paid by the applicant.
COORDINATION
This report has been coordinated with the City Attorney’s Office.
PUBLIC CONTACT
Public contact was made by posting the Council agenda on the City’s official-notice bulletin board outside City Hall Council Chambers. A complete agenda packet is available on the City’s website and in the City Clerk’s Office at least 72 hours prior to a Regular Meeting and 24 hours prior to a Special Meeting. A hard copy of any agenda report may be requested by contacting the City Clerk’s Office at (408) 615-2220, email clerk@santaclaraca.gov or at the public information desk at any City of Santa Clara public library.
RECOMMENDATION
Recommendation
Affirm the Planning Commission’s decision and adopt a Resolution denying the Modification to the Conditional Use Permit to change existing Conditions of Approval for the existing Subaru Dealership at 3225 Stevens Creek Boulevard that would have allowed trash pick-up on Cecil Avenue, subject to Findings and Conditions of Approval.
Staff
Prepared by Alex Tellez, Assistant Planner, Community Development Department
Reviewed by: Afshan Hamid, Community Development Director
Approved by: Jovan Grogan, City Manager
ATTACHMENTS
1. Vicinity Map
2. Appeal Application Form
3. Staff Reports & Minutes (October 7, 2025)
4. CC Minute Excerpt (October 21, 2025)
5. PC Denial Reso. August 13, 2025
6. Resolution To Deny an Appeal
7. Modified Conditions of Approval
8. Development Plans
9. City Council Questions & Answers (October 7, 2025)
10. Violation Letter
11. Email Correspondence-Permit Violation