Yucaipa council refers car-wash spacing rule to planning commission, suggests 1,500-foot buffer

The Yucaipa City Council on Feb. 9 referred a proposed proximity-based restriction on new car washes to the planning commission, recommending a 1,500-foot buffer between car-wash uses. The motion passed by voice vote after staff presented three radii (500, 1,000 and 1,500 feet) as options to limit clustering of standalone car washes and car-wash components of fueling stations.

Ben Matlock, who led the staff presentation, said the maps in the agenda packet show commercially zoned areas where future car-wash uses could be allowed and that the proposed radii would "curtail future development" inside those spheres. City Manager Moore and other staff said the measures are intended to guide planning-commission review rather than to prohibit applications outright.

Council members questioned both the policy's aims and its potential economic effects. One council member pressed staff to obtain HDL tax data showing whether adding fuel stations or car washes increases net city sales tax or merely redistributes existing sales. Another warned of legal risk if the city attempts to block a lawful use permitted by existing zoning. Council member Woolsey said, "I don't support any of that," when asked about moratorium-style restrictions, arguing that restrictions can open the door to further caps on other businesses.

After public comment offering local-market context, the council moved to send the draft ordinance and maps to the planning commission with a recommended 1,500-foot separation between car washes. The planning commission will review the ordinance language, consider findings about compatibility and concentration, and bring recommendations back to council; staff said use permits and conditional-use findings remain the tools that can deny incompatible projects.

Next steps: staff will prepare ordinance language and planning-commission materials reflecting the council's direction and will return with the planning commission's recommendation before any final council action.