3 New Costco Project Measures Approved By Pleasanton City Council

PLEASANTON, CA — The Pleasanton City Council voted Tuesday night to pass three measures to pave the way for the Johnson Drive Economic Development Zone project. Future tenants could include a Costco, two hotels, a drive-thru coffee shop and other stores in the 40-acre lot along Johnson Drive, near I-680 and Stoneridge Drive.

"If there's been a vetted project in this city, this is it," said Councilmember Jerry Pentin.

The council passed a resolution to change the land use to allow for retail, commercial and business offices. Currently the land is designated for business park and industrial use, the city wrote.

Councilmembers introduced an ordinance approving a rezoning the project site to allow for commercial use. The area is currently zoned for industrial use.

The council also approved a revised environmental report assessing potential environmental impacts to the area, despite concerns from a group that sued the city in 2015 over the initial environmental impact report conducted for the project.

The first environmental report was a point of contention in the community, prompting a group called Pleasanton Citizens for Responsible Growth to sue the city. The group alleged that the California Environmental Equality Act had been violated because the air quality review related to the nearby Stoneridge Apartment Community was incomplete, the city wrote in a report to the council.

Costco and the city agreed to perform additional air quality analyses and the group agreed to dismiss the lawsuit, the city wrote.

New traffic signals would be installed to help mitigate environmental impacts from traffic to a "less than significant" level, said city planner Eric Luchini during the council meeting. The area along southbound Stoneridge Drive, parallel to the Dublin San Ramon Services District ponds, and westbound along Johnson Drive onto the I-680 onramp will be widened, regardless of whether the project is approved, he said.

As for air quality, a 2019 analysis based on updated and more precise information determined air impacts would be "less than significant." Costco also agreed to reduce the amount of gas distributed each year at its gas station to 24 million gallons, Luchini said.

Air quality during construction could still be poor, but workers could take steps such as using lower-emission equipment and limit equipment idling time to two minutes, he said.

An attorney with the group that sued to block the project in 2015 submitted a letter Monday again raising concerns about the environmental report, but the council unanimously to approve the latest steps in the project.

The city estimates the project would contribute at least $1.4 to $1.7 million to its general fund each year, equivalent to 1.7 to 1.9 percent of Pleasanton's annual general fund expenses.