PLANNING COMMISSION MEETING DATE:
October 6, 2025
SUBJECT:
Title
COSTCO WHOLESALE REQUEST FOR A CONDITIONAL USE PERMIT FOR THE OPERATION OF AN AUTOMOTIVE FUELING STATION AT AN EXISTING COSTCO BUSINESS WAREHOUSE IN THE COMMERCIAL (C) ZONE
LOCATION/APN:
150 S. BENT AVENUE. APN: 219-331-43-00
CASE NUMBER:
MITIGATED NEGATIVE DECLARATION (ND25-002) AND CONDITIONAL USE PERMIT (CUP23-0004)
Body
Recommendation
Recommendation
ADOPT AND APPROVE the following in the order set forth below:
1. ADOPT Mitigated Negative Declaration (ND25-002);
2. APPROVE Resolution PC 25-5156 (Conditional Use Permit CUP23-0004) to allow for the operation of an automotive fueling station as an accessory use at an existing Costco Business Warehouse in the Commercial (C) Zone;
Body
Introduction
The project applicant is requesting the approval of a Conditional Use Permit (CUP 23-0004) to allow for the construction and operation of an automotive fueling station with 18 multi-product fuel dispensers covered by a 16,090 square-foot canopy. The project site is located on the west side of Bent Avenue, between San Marcos Boulevard and Grand Avenue, as shown on the Vicinity Map (Attachment A).
Discussion
The project site is a 14-acre property located at 150 S. Bent Avenue and is currently developed with a Costco Business Warehouse. Under Site Development Plan (SDP00-189), the existing 144,000 square-foot commercial building was constructed as a Fry’s Electronics retail store in 2002. In 2021, tenant improvements remodeled the building for the operation of a Costco Business Warehouse. The proposed Conditional Use Permit (CUP23-0004) would allow for the addition of an automotive fueling station as an accessory use for the existing commercial warehouse.
The site is zoned Commercial (C) and designated “Commercial” in the General Plan. The project site is in the vicinity of the Marcos Specific Plan, approved for the development of 102 multi-family condominium units and 56,924 square feet of commercial space, to be located on the vacant commercial property to the north across Linda Vista Drive; industrial and open space to the west; commercial to the east across Bent Avenue; and commercial to the south. In accordance with San Marcos Municipal Code (SMMC) Section 20.220.040 of the Zoning Ordinance, an automotive fueling station (or gas station) is allowed in the Commercial (C) Zone with a Conditional Use Permit and requires approval by the Planning Commission.
As shown in Attachment E, the proposed gas station would be located in the northeast corner of the existing parking lot of the Costco Business Warehouse. The existing northerly access driveway (off of Bent Avenue) would be moved approximately 130 feet to the south to provide a greater distance for the six (6) queuing lanes for vehicles accessing the fuel pumps. Each fuel pump is designed to serve two (2) vehicles simultaneously, allowing a total of thirty-six (36) vehicles to refuel at one time. A 17.5-foot tall canopy would cover the fueling area and would be designed to architecturally complement the Costco building in color and materials. In addition, the gas station would include a 271 square-foot mechanical room, three (3) 40,000 gallon underground gasoline storage tanks, and a 1,500 gallon underground fuel additive storage tank.
The project will replace 2,400 square feet of existing landscaping with 7,000 square feet of new landscaping surrounding the gas station area for beautification and screening purposes. All on-site landscaping will be maintained privately and will be required to comply with the City’s Landscape Water Efficiency Ordinance (SMMC Chapter 20.330).
The project will construct a Class IV bicycle facility along Grand Avenue project frontage, from Linda Vista Drive to Bent Avenue, and a Class II bicycle facility on Bent Avenue along the project frontage.
In addition, SMMC Chapter 20.420 provides specific development standards for automotive services including a 500-foot minimum separation from other gas stations and requirements for building and fuel pump setbacks, as well as building height limitations. The proposed gas station is located more than 1,200 feet from the existing gas station at the northeast corner of San Marcos Boulevard and Grand Avenue. In addition, the proposed development complies with the development standards for automotive uses in accordance with Chapter 20.420 and the applicable development standards of the Commercial (C) Zone (Chapter 20.220).
The main point of ingress and egress for customer access to the proposed gas station would be from a driveway on Bent Avenue. Ingress from Bent would require the users of the gas station to make an 180-degree turn into the queue for the gas pumps. A turning analysis was performed to demonstrate that a large 20-foot long vehicle would be able to perform this turning movement without impacting opposing traffic. A queuing analysis was performed to demonstrate vehicle stacking is not anticipated to encroach onto Bent Avenue.
Fuel trucks would use the southernmost driveway on Bent Ave as the main point of ingress but would egress from a proposed driveway on Linda Vista Drive, on the northwest corner of the site. The driveway on Linda Vista Drive would be for fuel truck and fire vehicle egress only and not for public nor customer use. An on-site loading zone on the west side of the fuel pumps is proposed for fuel trucks and fire vehicles.
The proposed gas station would remove 211 parking spaces at the northeast corner of the parking lot resulting in 583 parking spaces remaining available for customers and employees. In addition, the project would include 36 fueling positions located under the proposed canopy area of the gas station. In accordance with the Off-Street Parking Ordinance (SMMC Chapter 20.340), the existing Costco Business Warehouse along with the proposed gas station, is required to provide a total of 588 parking spaces. This requirement is based on a parking ratio of one space per 250 square feet of floor area for an existing warehouse building and one space per 1,000 square feet of canopy area for the proposed gas station. As a result, the proposed 619 spaces would exceed the minimum parking requirement and therefore adequate parking would be available for the Costco building and gas station.
Environmental Review
In accordance with the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), Mitigated Negative Declaration (ND25-002) (SCH No. 2025070440) (Attachment D) was prepared for the proposed project and circulated for 30-day public review from July 9, 2025 to August 8, 2025. The City received two comment letters. The San Diego County Archeological Society concurred with the mitigation measures proposed in regard to the Archeological Survey Report. CalTrans provided comments related to analysis of the project’s effects on the Caltrans exit and intersection located at the State Route 78 exit ramp at Via Vera Cruz and Grand Avenue. Detailed responses to the comments on the MND are included in Attachment D.
Cultural Resources
In accordance with State law (AB-52), local Native American tribes were notified and consulted regarding the proposed project. An Archeological Survey Report was prepared by Helix Environmental, which analyzed potential prehistoric resources on the subject property. The report indicates no sites have been previously recorded on the property; however, there are 56 recorded cultural resources within a one-mile radius of the project site. A field survey conducted by the consultant did not identify evidence for prehistoric resources on the project site. However, the project site is covered with pavement and landscaping, and because of this, much of the original ground surface could not be observed. As a result, there remains potential for subsurface resources to exist if undisturbed soil is encountered during excavation. Therefore, all ground-disturbing work for the project, as determined by an archaeologist and Native American Monitor is required to be monitored per a pre-excavation agreement.
Transportation (Vehicle Miles Traveled Analysis)
The project was required to prepare a Vehicle Miles Traveled (VMT) analysis in accordance with the City’s Transportation Impact Assessment Guidelines (TIA Guidelines) as outlined in the project’s Regional VMT Assessment (MND Appendix H).
The VMT analysis screening threshold was evaluated by using Costco-specific transaction data from nearby Costco facilities. This alternate method was applied due to the land use type of members-only fuel facility not being easily represented in SANDAG’s travel demand model.
The VMT assessment identified and analyzed three contributing trip types: shifting existing regional Costco trips, shifting local (non-Costco) trips, and employee trips. This proposed Costco gas station location provides an additional option for existing Costco members. It was determined to lower average trip length for members within the existing market areas by 4,387 daily VMT. This proposed gas station may attract new Costco members for primary gas station use and was analyzed to increase daily VMT by 2,822. Employee trips added was analyzed to increase daily VMT by 116. The combination of change in daily VMT due to all identified trip types results in a net decrease of Regional Daily VMT by 1,449. Therefore, transportation impacts would be considered less than significant.
Level of Service Analysis (Land Use and Planning)
Since Senate Bill 743 went into effect, analysis of traffic congestion based on the level of service (LOS) metric is not part of the CEQA impact assessment. However, the City also requires a separate LOS-based traffic analysis to demonstrate that the project would maintain mobility performance goals outlined in the City’s General Plan (Mobility Policy M-1.4). As such, the LOS-based traffic study was submitted to the City under separate cover for review and approval (MND Appendix G).
The traffic study indicates that the proposed project anticipates to generate approximately 2,409 average weekday daily trips (ADT) including 145 trips during the AM peak hours and 202 trips during the PM peak hours.
Ten intersections and ten road segments were analyzed in the traffic study including Costco driveways for Existing Conditions, Near Term 2025, and Horizon Year 2050 scenarios.
Year 2023 Existing Conditions
In the existing conditions, three intersections and four road segments were analyzed to be operating in less than acceptable LOS as listed below.
Intersections
• S Las Posas Rd / Grand Ave (PM Peak Hour, LOS E)
• Grand Ave / Via Vera Cruz / SR-78 EB Ramp (PM Peak Hour, LOS E)
• W San Marcos Blvd / Grand Ave (PM Peak Hour, LOS F)
Road Segments
• W San Marcos Blvd between Via Vera Cruz and S Bent Ave (LOS F)
• W San Marcos Blvd between S Bent Ave and Grant Ave (LOS F)
• W San Marcos Blvd between Grand Ave and SR-78 EB Ramp (LOS F)
• W San Marcos Blvd between SR-78 EB Ramp and Knoll Rd (LOS E)
Near Term 2025
For Near-Term Year 2025, no road segments analyzed are expected to increase V/C (volume to capacity ratio) more than 0.02, therefore, no study roadway segment improvements are required in the Near Term. Three intersections were identified as operating in an unacceptable LOS E or F and adding more than a 2-second delay with project condition as listed and discussed below on the required improvements.
Table 1: Near Term 2025 LOS Analysis
|
Intersection |
Without Project |
With Project |
|
S Las Posas Rd / Grand Ave |
LOS E (AM) LOS F (PM) |
LOS E (AM) +4.3 sec delay LOS F (PM) +25.3 sec delay |
|
Grand Ave / Via Vera Cruz / SR-78 EB Ramp |
LOS E (PM) |
LOS F (PM) +24.9 sec delay LOS E (MID*) +15.8 sec delay |
|
Grand Ave / Linda Vista Dr |
LOS E (PM) |
LOS F (PM) +23.3 sec delay |
*MID represents Saturday Midday operations
The intersection of South Las Posas Road and State Route 78 Westbound Ramp lies within CalTrans jurisdiction. CalTrans performance standards differ from the City’s in that improvements are only required when the addition of a project results in ramp intersection queues extending beyond the available storage. The 95th percentile queues were analyzed under year 2025 conditions with or without the project, to extend beyond the available storage within the left-turn lane. It was analyzed that the proposed project would contribute 7.3% of the trips at this intersection, representing a minimal share of the overall demand. As the project would not substantially impact the anticipated 2025 condition queue, the queuing analysis was determined to meet CalTrans conditions, therefore no improvements at this intersection are recommended.
The intersection of South Las Posas Road and Grand Avenue requires improvements for signal timing adjustments to decrease AM and PM delays to acceptable LOS standards.
The intersection of Grand Avenue, Via Vera Cruz, and State Route 78 Eastbound Ramp requires signal timing adjustments to decrease AM, PM, and MID (midday) delays to acceptable LOS standards. The construction of a dedicated south bound right turn lane on Grand Ave was evaluated for the project to provide a fair share contribution of 31.1%.
The intersection of Grand Avenue and Linda Vista Drive requires improvements which the project will install a dedicated north bound right turn lane and north bound left turn lane on Linda Vista Drive to decrease AM, PM, and MID delays to acceptable LOS standards.
Horizon Year 2050
For Horizon Year 2050, no road segments analyzed are expected to increase V/C more than 0.02, therefore, no roadway segment improvements are required.
The intersection at Grand Ave and Linda Vista Drive is identified as operating in an unacceptable LOS E or F and adding 31.9 seconds of average delay with project condition. The installation of a traffic signal at Grand Avenue and Lista Vista Drive was evaluated for the project to provide a fair share contribution of 10.6%. The clustered traffic signal with optimized timing with the adjacent existing signal at Grand Avenue and Bent Avenue is proposed to satisfy conditions in the Horizon Year by providing acceptable LOS.
Public Comment
The City has received a detailed comment letter from one resident objecting to the project, citing anticipated Traffic Congestion, Environment Impact of the scale of the fueling station, another fueling station causing market oversaturation and harm to local businesses, and redundancy of adding another Costco fueling station within the City of San Marcos. A second public comment objecting to the project was received by email, citing the expected production of additional traffic, noise, an environmental hazard, and potential soil contamination adjacent to Mixed Use Residential land uses is reason for concern.
The public comment letters submitted to the City during the preparation of this report have been included as Attachment “F.” The responses to these comments are also provided within the attached. Any subsequent public comment letters received will be provided to the Planning Commission prior to the hearing.
Attachment(s)
Adopting Resolutions:
1. Resolution PC 25-5156 (Conditional Use Permit CUP23-0004) - A RESOLUTION OF THE PLANNING COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF SAN MARCOS APPROVING A CONDITIONAL USE PERMIT FOR THE OPERATION OF AN AUTOMOTIVE FUELING STATION AS AN ACCESSORY USE AT AN EXISTING COSTCO BUSINESS WAREHOUSE IN THE COMMERCIAL (C) ZONE
A. Vicinity Map
B. Requested Entitlements
C. Site & Project Characteristics
D. Mitigated Negative Declaration (ND25-002)
E. Project Plans
F. Public Comments
Prepared by: Sarah Cluff, Associate Planner
Reviewed by: Scott Nightingale, Principal Planner
Reviewed by: Kyrenne Chua, Principal Civil Engineer
Submitted by: Joseph Farace, Planning Division Director