Planning Commission split on approval of drive-thru-only Starbucks; concerns raised over lack of pedestrian access

On Wednesday evening, the Palm Springs Planning Commission narrowly approved several permits to develop a drive-thru-only Starbucks at the southeast corner of North Palm Canyon Drive and Racquet Club Road.

The building will be just 1,150 square feet and occupy a small and oddly-shaped parcel at the site of a former shopping center that was razed in the early 2000s. The proposed site plan would allow 19 cars to queue up using a dual drive-thru lane.

The vote wasn’t smooth sailing, with several commissioners raising concerns about a drive-thru-only business. With commissioners Lauri Aylaian and J.R. Roberts not in attendance, the project moved forward after a 3-2 split decision. Commission Chair Kathy Weremiuk and Commissioner Robert Rotman voted no, while commissioners Carl Baker, Scott Miller, and David Murphy voted yes.

In casting her no vote, Weremiuk expressed her displeasure with the plan, saying, “What we have here is something that provides no pedestrian presence in an area that is the entrance to the city.”

She described the suburban strip mall across the street as “outdated” and said the commission shouldn’t aim to replicate that experience.

“From the point of view of good urbanism, I don’t think this fits,” she said. “Giving absolutely no pedestrian access is a disservice to the community from this commission.”

Baker, who previously served on the city’s Sustainability Commission, said the proposal “flies in the face” of everything that the commission tries to do by allowing 19 cars to idle while waiting for coffee. However, that didn’t dissuade him from voting to approve the project by the end of the discussion.

Rachel Novak, representing Kaidence Group, the proposed project’s applicant and future property owner, told the commissioners that plans to include a walk-up ordering window had been scrapped due to safety concerns.

Novak said that another nearby location, at Sunny Dunes Road and Palm Canyon Drive, had to close its walk-up window because of security threats to the staff. Weremiuk, however, pushed back on that.

Weremiuk said she spoke with the employees of the nearby Del Taco and 7-Eleven. According to Weremiuk, they only had minor problems with homeless people and no problems once employees asked them to leave.

Commissioners Miller and Murphy voiced support, saying they hoped it would encourage more businesses to open in the vacant area. They dismissed concerns about walkability, with Miller saying that vehicle traffic already dominates the area.

Rotman, however, disagreed. Before voting no, he told the commission he thought the project would set a precedent for more drive-thru-only projects and that its lack of pedestrian access limits future development.

Having secured the necessary permits from the Planning Commission on the condition that several minor changes be incorporated – such as a shade structure – the project now moves forward to the Architectural Review Committee for review at a future meeting.

---