Planning Commission backs conditional-use for multi-tenant development near Hilton Garden Drive

The Auburn Planning Commission voted to recommend approval of a conditional-use permit for a roughly 3.62-acre commercial development at the terminus of Hilton Garden Drive on January 2026. The project, in the Comprehensive Development District (CDD), will host multiple office and contractor-type tenants and sought to pare back a longer list of conditional uses staff provided during review.

At the meeting, an engineering representative for the applicant said the traffic impact study found the development would be low-impact for nearby intersections and did not identify any signal warrants. "Long story short, with the traffic impact study, this is expected to be a pretty low impact development with regards to traffic on The Creek, especially Hilton Garden Inn," the applicant's representative told the commission. The consultant said the study recommended one mitigation: a stop sign at the terminus of Hilton Garden Drive by the Backage Road, and the applicant agreed it could be provided as part of the development.

Staff informed commissioners that permitted versus conditional uses were summarized in table 4‑1 of the packet and that the proposed exterior materials must comply with the city's corridor overlay because the property has frontage that touches Bent Creek. The applicant described building exteriors as painted concrete masonry (architectural CMU) and said roll-up doors visible on renderings would be glazed.

Commissioners asked staff how traffic mitigations would be enforced; planning staff said any mitigation requirement would be handled through the city's Development Review Team (DRT) process and, where warranted, could be required of the developer. The commission then moved to recommend approval of the conditional use; the motion passed.

Next steps: the commission’s recommendation goes to City Council for a final decision on the conditional use, and details such as final building elevations, landscaping and any required traffic mitigation will be resolved during permitting and DRT review.