Plan Commission forwards draft car‑wash rules to council: automatic washes allowed in Michigan Road overlay with noise, vacuum and hours limits

COMMISSION ADDS NOISE AND OPERATING LIMITS TO CAR‑WASH RULES
At the request of the Town Council, the Plan Commission reviewed a zoning text amendment on March 16 that would allow automatic (conveyor) car washes within the Michigan Road overlay district while continuing to exclude self‑service bay washes from that overlay.
Staff drafted operational standards applica ble when an automatic car wash is located within 1,000 feet of a residential property: daily operating hours limited to 7 a.m.–9 p.m., washing/waxing and mechanical drying conducted entirely within an enclosed building (customer vacuum stations may be outside), a cap on outdoor vacuum stations (no more than 18), and a requirement that outdoor vacuum equipment not exceed 55 dBA at the property line during operating hours. The staff memo included draft definitions for “automatic car wash” (building with mechanical conveyor processing and ancillary customer services) and “self‑service car wash” (customer‑operated bays).
Commissioners and staff debated the precise noise threshold and whether lighting standards and vacuum hours should be clarified; some members suggested a 60 dBA cap while others preferred the proposed 55 dBA. The commission also asked for clearer definitions to avoid confusion between semi‑automated and fully automatic systems, and asked staff to incorporate the commission’s edits into final ordinance language.
The Plan Commission voted to forward the amendment to Town Council with a favorable recommendation as amended by staff and additional clarifications recommended by the commission president (definition cleanup, vacuum-hour linkage to operating hours and a single gateway standard). Town Council will consider the drafted ordinance language in a future meeting.