The Buzz: Redding rescinds approval of Shasta View ARCO. Here’s why – Redding Record Searchlight

Jagdeep Singh Randhawa thought construction of his AM/PM ARCO station in east Redding would be well underway by now.

Instead, he’s working on resubmitting plans to the city — more than a year after the city approved his project.

In June 2018, the Redding City Council, on a 3-1 vote, OK’d plans to build an 24-hour AM/PM Arco gas station on northeast corner of Shasta View Drive and Goodwater Avenue south of Highway 44.

The controversial project was opposed by some neighbors and businesses in the area.

Nearly two months after the approval, Kulveer Kaur sued the city to stop the project because a market analysis had not been done. Kaur asserted because the general plan was amended for the project, a market analysis was needed.

His attorney, Jeff Swanson, said Kaur has an ownership stake in the Chevron station on the other side of the Highway 44-Shasta View interchange.

Fast-forward to last month, Kaur agreed to dismiss his lawsuit, granted that Randhawa starts over, and this time expect a market analysis to be done.

“I have no idea why I have to do it again. That makes no sense to me,” Randhawa recently told me.

Redding City Attorney Barry DeWalt said, “both parties have agreed to rescind all approvals … and repeal the ordinance which rezoned the property in exchange for a dismissal. This means that the project would need to be resubmitted to the Planning Commission for approval.”

After the ARCO project was approved and before Kaur filed his lawsuit, the city drafted a policy outlining when a market analysis is needed. But under the policy, the gas station-minimart would not have required such a study because it’s not 10 acres or more — though the planning department has the discretion to require a market analysis be done in such instances.

So why didn’t the city let the ARCO approval stand?

“The problem in the litigation was that the general plan suggests that we should have had a policy on whether a market analysis is required in place at the time that the project was approved,” DeWalt said.

“Rather than waste our resources and the court’s resources on a technical issue about whether a standing policy was required prior to project approval or whether we could consider whether a market analysis is due on a case-by-case basis, we just agreed to do it over.”

Redding attorney Swanson, who in the runup to last year’s approval also spoke on behalf of neighboring property owners on both sides of Highway 44, said it’s not just Kaur who opposes the proposed ARCO.

In a letter to the city before the project was approved last year, Swanson said a market analysis needs to be done to demonstrate whether there is a need for the project.

“I know people in the business park right next to it, they don’t want a gas station next to their businesses,” Swanson said. “That was one of the gripes — that was never supposed to be a gas station. It was commercial property for other offices, so people who bought or built in that office complex right next door, that was always their expectation.

“One person was named (on the lawsuit) but there were a lot of other people that were not happy with the city’s decision.”

Meanwhile, Randhawa said he will start over because he can’t afford to abandon the ARCO project. He’s already invested about $200,000 on the site.

“We have spent a lot of money,” said Randhawa, who also owns the ARCO in Shasta Lake.

Dollar General project still moving forward

Dollar General still wants to build a store on Placer Road near Grant School west of Redding.

As I reported in March, the project has caught the attention of neighbors, who are circulating a petition opposing the store. The “STOP DOLLAR GENERAL” online petition had more than 900 signatures as of Friday morning.

Luis Topete, an associate planner with Shasta County, told me recently that Dollar General still “intends to move forward.”

The county, though, is waiting for some additional information, so it can process the application and bring the project to the Planning Commission. Dollar General needs a commercial administrative permit. The property would not have to be rezoned.

Dollar General wants to build a 9,100-square-foot store on property adjacent to and east of the intersection of Placer and Centerville Oak roads. The store would be built on vacant land next to Centerville Feed & General Store, but the driveway would encroach onto the feed store property.

Topete couldn’t say when the project would come before the Shasta County Planning Commission.

“We would be speculating at this point,” he said.

Opponents are concerned about the safety of schoolchildren and believe crime will go up in the area if Dollar General were to open.

Stay tuned.

Redding Beer Week welcomes new brewery

Just in time for Redding Beer Week, Cedar Crest Brewing expects to open its doors in downtown Redding this weekend.

Joining Final Draft and Woody’s downtown, Cedar Crest opens a brewery, winery and tap house in Cascade Square at the corner of California and Placer streets. Cedar Crest is on the Placer Street side.

Redding’s other brewery is Fall River, which is headquartered just south of downtown on Eastside Road.

“We are excited to open in alignment with Redding Beer Week,” Cedar Crest co-owner Kate Grissom told me via email.

Redding Beer Week (http://www.reddingbeerweek.com/) kicks off this weekend and runs through Aug. 17. Put on by Catalyst Redding Young Professionals, the event features local breweries, restaurants and other business in a weeklong beer-palooza — 66 events over eight days.

Cedar Crest has a tasting room in downtown Red Bluff inside the Enjoy store that will remain open.

Behind the tasting room in Redding will be a full-production brewery and winery.

Among the Beer Week events at Cedar Crest was a food pairing with Wilda’s, which had been a Cascade Square neighbor before it closed Aug. 7. “Buddha Bowls & Beer” was scheduled for Monday.

No matter, Grissom said, Monday’s event will still happen.

“Regarding Wilda’s, we are saddened by the closure. Our purpose of the promotion was to encourage people to bring in outside food and to support downtown eateries,” she said.

Grissom noted that many other downtown eateries are expressing a willingness to deliver food to the brewery. Or, if possible, a Cedar Crest employee will run out and bring back to-go orders.

“We look forward to building partnerships with the food establishments in downtown,” Grissom said.

READ MORE FROM THE BUZZ:

• Downtown Redding is getting a welcome sign (and maybe people who will want a selfie)
• Redding’s local coffee scene gets more caffeinated
• Redding is one of the ‘most dynamic’ metro areas, study says

David Benda covers business, development and anything else that comes up for the USA TODAY Network in Redding. He also writes the weekly “Buzz on the Street” column. He’s part of a team of dedicated reporters that investigate wrongdoing, cover breaking news and tell other stories about your community. Reach him on Twitter @DavidBenda_RS or by phone at 1-530-225-8219. To support and sustain this work, please subscribe today.

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