Rezone Application No. PLN2015-0030 - Blue Diamond

Rezone Application No. PLN2015-0030 - Blue Diamond

Request to rezone two parcels totaling 42.99± acres from L-M (Limited Industrial), A-2-10 (General Agriculture), and Planned Development (P-D) (43) to a new P-D to allow for future expansion of an existing almond processing and storage facility, and to consolidate existing operations into one zoning district. Blue Diamond has been operating since 1968 on the northern portion of APN 135-042-020 (zoned L-M) as an almond processing facility. In 1978 the southern portion of APN 135-042-020 (17.89 acres) was rezoned to P-D (43) to allow for the expansion of the Blue Diamond facility, including construction of a nut processing facility, four nut storage buildings, and retail store and administration building. APN 135-044-003 (zoned A-2) previously contained a hulling/shelling operation and was acquired by Blue Diamond in 2005 to allow for additional expansion. The existing hulling and shelling building was converted to a maintenance building and an additional warehouse was constructed under SAA PLN2015-0036. The project site is currently improved with structures totaling 631,031 square-feet, with 12,125 square-feet for the retail store (for the on-site sale of the company’s products including those produced at other facilities) and administration facilities (for Human Resources, inventory control, and field membership managers), and the remaining 618,906 square-feet consisting of warehouses for the almond processing and storage operations. The site is also improved with landscaping, a monument sign (9’ x 7’3”), and a 332-space parking lot with 16 light poles (ranging from 16-40 feet in height). Almonds (both shelled and unshelled) arrive at the site from 3,000 different almond producers throughout California, the majority of which come from Stanislaus County. The hulled/shelled almonds are sorted, pasteurized, and packaged for sale or stored in totes for further processing. The site also processes the almonds by dry roasting and producing almond flour. No flavoring, candying, or other processing occurs on-site. The hulled/unshelled almonds are not shelled on-site. The almond flour, roasted almonds, shelled, and unshelled almonds are stored in the cold storage distribution warehouse until ready to be transported to either the customer, or to another facility for additional processing. Existing processing and storage uses include, pasteurization, cold storage, almond processing (dry roasting and almond flour) and packaging, maintenance, dryer facilities, and six bulk receiving and storage warehouses. Planned new construction is to begin by May 2022 and to be completed as the market demands. New construction totaling 240,300 square-feet includes: a 43,200 square-foot addition to the manufacturing building; a 6,000 square-foot covered scale; a 92,600 square-foot addition to the main processing building; the addition of a receiving area to four existing bulk storage warehouses totaling 30,000 square-feet; a 4,500 square-foot addition to the retail store; and a new bulk storage warehouse with receiving area totaling 64,000 square-feet. No new uses are proposed. The facility operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week, with 154 employees on a maximum shift and three shifts per day, during their peak season which typically runs from August through May and 74 employees on a maximum shift during June and July. Approval of this request is expected to increase the maximum number of employees on-site to 185 from August through May and 89 during June and July. The operation currently generates a varied amount of truck trips depending on the month, ranging anywhere from 136 to 176 per day from July through February, and a maximum of 81 daily truck trips from March through June. Daily truck trips are expected to increase to an estimate ranging from 163 to 211 from July through March and an estimated maximum of 97 per day from April through June. The site has access to County-maintained Sisk Road and Nutcracker Lane and is served by the City of Modesto for water and Salida Sanitary District for sewer. The site will be merged as required by development standards to be applied to the project.

Salida

Stanislaus

Citywide, Countywide

California Air Resources Board (ARB), California Department of Conservation (DOC), California Department of Fish and Wildlife, Bay Delta Region 3 (CDFW), California Department of Fish and Wildlife, Central Region 4 (CDFW), California Department of Fish and Wildlife, North Central Region 2 (CDFW), California Department of Parks and Recreation, California Department of Transportation, District 10 (DOT), California Department of Water Resources (DWR), California Governor's Office of Emergency Services (OES), California Highway Patrol (CHP), California Native American Heritage Commission (NAHC), California Natural Resources Agency, California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC), California Regional Water Quality Control Board, Central Valley Sacramento Region 5 (RWQCB), Central Valley Flood Protection Board, Department of Toxic Substances Control, Office of Historic Preservation, State Water Resources Control Board, Division of Drinking Water

Industrial (Sq. Ft. 240300, Acres 42.99, Employees 185)

Rezone

Air Quality