Upland planning panel denies Quick Quack car wash at 60 North Mountain Avenue
May 27, 2026 | Upland, San Bernardino County, California
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The Upland Planning Commission voted May 27 to deny an administrative use permit (AUP-25-0027) and development plan review (DPR-250012) for a proposed Quick Quack express drive-through car wash at 60 North Mountain Avenue after staff concluded the application fails to meet a city ordinance requiring a minimum half-mile separation among car wash facilities.
City planning staff member Joshua Winner told the commission the applicant proposed a roughly 3,500-square-foot, three-lane queuing drive-through wash with on-site vacuum stalls, landscaping and a building height under the 40-foot limit. Winner said the application was submitted Dec. 23, 2025 but was not deemed complete until after the City Council adopted Ordinance No. 2007 on Jan. 12, 2026, which amended the municipal code to require a 1/2-mile separation for projects not already entitled. "This project falls under the requirements of that ordinance," Winner said, and staff recommended denial because the commission could not make the required findings of compatibility and site suitability.
The ordinance, Winner said, was adopted in response to council concerns about an overconcentration of car washes along commercial corridors; staff displayed a map showing existing facilities within the required buffer. Winner also noted that the denial is CEQA-exempt under State CEQA Guidelines §15270 and that the applicant’s traffic and noise studies did not identify operational impacts.
Applicant John Stewart asked the commission to continue the hearing so his architect, traffic engineer and other team members (who Stewart said were ill) could present their full case. "I wanted to request a continuance if possible," Stewart said. Staff and several commissioners, including Commissioner Johnson and Vice Chair Caldwell, said additional testimony would not change the ordinance-based findings. "Your folks are sick, but they could say anything and it's not gonna change the facts of where we are," Commissioner Johnson said.
Commissioner Johnson moved to find the denial CEQA-exempt under Guidelines §15270 and to adopt a resolution denying the applications for the Quick Quack car wash at 60 North Mountain Avenue. The motion was seconded and the commission voted in favor; the chair confirmed the item passed after the vote displayed on the meeting screen.
Staff noted the applicant may appeal the Planning Commission’s decision to the City Council; the transcript records the appeal period as running May 28 to June 8. The commission adjourned to a special meeting scheduled for June 17.
What the commission decided does not preclude an appeal to the City Council within the announced period; no council action appears in this transcript.
City planning staff member Joshua Winner told the commission the applicant proposed a roughly 3,500-square-foot, three-lane queuing drive-through wash with on-site vacuum stalls, landscaping and a building height under the 40-foot limit. Winner said the application was submitted Dec. 23, 2025 but was not deemed complete until after the City Council adopted Ordinance No. 2007 on Jan. 12, 2026, which amended the municipal code to require a 1/2-mile separation for projects not already entitled. "This project falls under the requirements of that ordinance," Winner said, and staff recommended denial because the commission could not make the required findings of compatibility and site suitability.
The ordinance, Winner said, was adopted in response to council concerns about an overconcentration of car washes along commercial corridors; staff displayed a map showing existing facilities within the required buffer. Winner also noted that the denial is CEQA-exempt under State CEQA Guidelines §15270 and that the applicant’s traffic and noise studies did not identify operational impacts.
Applicant John Stewart asked the commission to continue the hearing so his architect, traffic engineer and other team members (who Stewart said were ill) could present their full case. "I wanted to request a continuance if possible," Stewart said. Staff and several commissioners, including Commissioner Johnson and Vice Chair Caldwell, said additional testimony would not change the ordinance-based findings. "Your folks are sick, but they could say anything and it's not gonna change the facts of where we are," Commissioner Johnson said.
Commissioner Johnson moved to find the denial CEQA-exempt under Guidelines §15270 and to adopt a resolution denying the applications for the Quick Quack car wash at 60 North Mountain Avenue. The motion was seconded and the commission voted in favor; the chair confirmed the item passed after the vote displayed on the meeting screen.
Staff noted the applicant may appeal the Planning Commission’s decision to the City Council; the transcript records the appeal period as running May 28 to June 8. The commission adjourned to a special meeting scheduled for June 17.
What the commission decided does not preclude an appeal to the City Council within the announced period; no council action appears in this transcript.
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