Title
Sam’s Market - Type 21 CUP (P25-024) [Noticed on 07/31/2026; Published 07/31/2026]
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FileID
File ID: 2026-01456
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Location
Location: 2685 Rio Linda Blvd., APN: 265-0241-009-0000, District 2
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Recommendation
Recommendation: Conduct a public hearing and upon conclusion, pass a Motion to approve: 1) Environmental Exemption pursuant to CEQA Guidelines section 15301 (Existing Facilities) and section 15061(b)(3) (Common Sense) and; 2) Conditional Use Permit to authorize the sale of beer, wine, and distilled spirits under a Type-21 license (General) in a 2,200 square foot convenience store on approximately 0.2-acres in the General Commercial (C-2) zone.
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Contact
Contact: Jose Quintanilla, Associate Planner, (916) 808-5879, jquintanilla@cityofsacramento.org; Zachary Dahla, Senior Planner, (916) 808-5584, zdahla@cityofsacramento.org; Community Development Department
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Presenter
Presenter: Jose Quintanilla, Associate Planner, (916) 808-5879, jquintanilla@cityofsacramento.org, Community Development Department
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Applicant
Applicant: Pete Tobin, Tobin Consulting, 7309 Marblethorpe Drive, Roseville, CA 95747
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Property Owner
Property Owner: Preet Tranz Incorporated, 2685 Rio Linda Blvd., Sacramento, CA 95815
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Attachments
Attachments:
1-Description/Analysis
2-Background
3-Findings of Fact and Conditions of Approval
4-Exhibit A: Plans
5-Exhibit B: Map of nearby sensitive uses and active alcohol licenses within one-half mile
6-Exhibit C: Sacramento Police Department Protest Conditions
7-Staff Presentation
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Description/Analysis
IssueDetail
Issue Detail: The applicant is requesting a conditional use permit (CUP) to authorize the sale of beer, wine, and distilled spirits within an existing neighborhood market at the southwest corner of Rio Linda Boulevard and Eleanor Avenue. The market already sells beer and wine through a California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC) Type-20 license. In 2024, staff discovered that ABC erroneously issued the Type-20 license at this market without the necessary Conditional Use Permit (CUP) approval for alcohol sales. The applicant seeks to bring the existing alcohol sales into compliance with City land use requirements and is requesting permission to allow for the sale of distilled spirits (Type-21 ABC license), in addition to the sale of beer and wine. Authorizing the use allows the city to condition the use as appropriate, including hours of operation and security requirements. This request requires review and approval by the Planning and Design Commission.
Required Findings of Fact
To approve a CUP, the Planning and Design Commission must make all the following findings:
a. The proposed use and its operating characteristics are consistent with the general plan and any applicable specific plan or transit village plan;
b. The proposed use and its operating characteristics are consistent with the applicable standards, requirements, and regulations of the zoning district in which it is located, and of all other provisions of this title and this code;
c. The proposed use is situated on a parcel that is physically suitable in terms of location, size, topography, and access, and that is adequately served by public services and utilities;
d. The proposed use and its operating characteristics are not detrimental to the public health, safety, convenience, or welfare of persons residing, working, visiting, or recreating in the surrounding neighborhood and will not result in the creation of a nuisance.
Because the applicant is requesting a CUP for alcoholic beverage sales for off-premises consumption, the Planning and Design Commission must make all the following alcohol-related findings in addition to the generally applicable CUP findings:
a. The proposed alcoholic beverage sales will not adversely affect the peace or general welfare of the surrounding neighborhood;
b. The proposed alcoholic beverage sales will not result in undue concentration of establishments dispensing alcoholic beverages;
c. The proposed alcoholic beverage sales will not enlarge or encourage the development of a skid row or blighted area; and
d. The proposed alcoholic beverage sales will not be contrary to or adversely affect any program of redevelopment or neighborhood conservation.
Staff’s determination of the project’s consistency with the above findings of fact, including the special findings for alcoholic beverage sales, are set forth in Attachment 3.
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Public/NeighborhoodOutreachComments
Public/Neighborhood Outreach and Comments: As part of the application review process, the proposed project was routed to Hagginwood Community Association, Rancho Del Paso Neighborhood Association, North Sacramento Chamber of Commerce, Benito Juarez Neighborhood Association, Preservation Sacramento, Civic Thread, and Region Builders. Staff received no comments.
Staff mailed early notices to all property owners, residents, and neighborhood associations within 500 feet of the project site after submission of the application. Staff received no comments in response to the early notice.
Staff also mailed hearing notices to all property owners, residents, and neighborhood groups within 500 feet of the project site and posted the site 10 days prior to the public hearing. Staff has not received comments to date in response to the hearing notice.
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PolicyConsiderations
Policy Considerations:
2040 General Plan
The 2040 General Plan designation for the project site is Residential Mixed Use (RMU). The General Plan recognizes that Residential Mixed Use designation areas are intended to foster vibrant walkable areas with a high-intensity mix of residential, commercial, office, and public uses, where daily errands can be accomplished on foot, by bicycle, or by transit. The project is consistent with the RMU designation as the sale of alcohol will occur in a neighborhood market located on a corridor surrounded by businesses and residential uses. Neighborhood markets offer residents convenient access to everyday necessities such as groceries and household goods. They are essential neighborhood serving assets that help create healthy, livable, and complete neighborhoods, further implementing the vision of the RMU designation.
In addition to the project’s consistency with the RMU designation, staff find that the project is consistent with the following 2040 General Plan Land Use and Placemaking Element goals and policies:
Goal LUP-2 Balanced and connected community with thriving neighborhoods and centers and development intensities linked to transit.
Policy LUP-2.1 Overall Balance of Uses. The City should encourage a balance and a mix of employment, residential, commercial, cultural, and tourism-related uses, as well as a full range of amenities and services necessary to support a thriving city.
Goal LUP-5. Attractive, thriving commercial centers that are well-located to serve the needs of Sacramento residents, workers, and visitors.
Policy LUP 5.5 Neighborhood Commerce. The City shall support geographically well-distributed neighborhood-oriented commercial centers or “main streets” to improve local access to stores, cafés and restaurants, and other neighborhood commercial uses and services.
Goal LUP-6. A city of healthy, livable, “complete neighborhoods” that provide for residents’ daily needs within easy walking or biking distance from home.
LUP-6.1 Neighborhoods as a Basic Unit. Recognizing Sacramento’s neighborhoods as foundational elements of the city’s urban structure, the City shall work to enhance their livability through the development of plans and programs.
Staff Response: The use is consistent with the goals and policies above in that the project allows for the expansion of goods offered at an existing neighborhood-serving market. The General Commercial (C-2) zone allows for offices, retail stores, and commercial service establishments. This zone is intended to provide for the sale of goods; the performance of services, including repair facilities; office uses; dwellings; small wholesale stores or distributors; and limited processing and packaging. This use will play a supporting role in the provision of goods to nearby residents consistent with the purpose of the C-2 zone. Neighborhood markets that offer convenient access to everyday necessities such as groceries and household essentials while also offering alcohol and other beverages are essential neighborhood serving assets that help create healthy, livable, and complete neighborhoods. Through the implementation of the conditions of approval and the conditions from the Police, the convenience market can contribute positively to the fabric of the neighborhood by fostering economic development and a full range of amenities necessary to support a neighborhood. Additionally, the sale of alcohol at this location has been ongoing since 2024 and the police department provided protest conditions at that time to the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control that have been placed on the market’s alcohol license. No active or previous violations or issues are identified by ABC or the City’s Code Enforcement Division related to the current alcohol sales.
Staff also find that the project complies with the following 2040 General Plan Environmental Justice Element goal and policies:
Goal EJ-2. Equitable access to fresh, healthy, and affordable food and wider access to healthy food resources in disadvantaged communities.
Policy EJ-2.16 Discourage Unhealthy Uses. The City should discourage the establishment of new drive-through restaurants, alcohol permits for off-site sales, and tobacco sales points near food deserts, schools, and pedestrian priority areas.
Policy EJ-2.20 Evaluating Health Impacts. The City may use best available data tools, including but not limited to Healthy Places Index, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Social Vulnerability Index, and CalEnviroScreen, when evaluating health impacts from proposed projects in disadvantaged and historically underserved communities.
Staff Response: Per General Plan Map EJ-1, the project site is located within a disadvantaged community (DAC). A proposal for new alcohol sales within a DAC requires special attention to ensure a project will not exacerbate existing health inequities or result in a disproportionate concentration of alcohol outlets. Consistent with General Plan policy EJ-2.16, staff evaluated the location and characteristics of the proposed alcohol permit for off-site sales in relation to available food sales, the location of nearby sensitive uses, and whether the area would be considered a pedestrian priority area to determine the appropriateness of the proposal. Staff also evaluated the requested alcohol sales using the best data tools available relative to health impacts, including CalEnviroScreen and the California Healthy Places Index. A full analysis of these data tools is provided in the Background section of this report. Although the project site is located within a disadvantaged community, the proposal would not establish a new alcohol outlet or increase the concentration of alcohol retailers in the area. Rather, it would authorize an existing neighborhood market that has operated under a Type-20 ABC license since February 2024 to expand its existing authorization to include distilled spirits while maintaining its primary function as a neighborhood-serving market. The site is also not located within a food desert as identified by the General Plan, and approval of the Conditional Use Permit would subject the operation to conditions intended to address compatibility, security, and ongoing oversight. Accordingly, when considering all of the evidence and as conditioned, staff does not believe that issuance of a CUP for off-site alcohol sales at this existing market will limit access to healthy food resources within the community or conflict with the intent of General Plan Policies EJ-2.16 and EJ-2.20.
North Sacramento Community Plan
The project site is located within the North Sacramento Community Plan Area of the 2040 General Plan. The 2040 General Plan identifies the Community Plan Area as a welcoming community with working families and diverse neighborhoods, appealing housing options, and quick, convenient, accessible transportation connections to key destinations in the city. The North Sacramento Community Plan does not have any applicable goals or policies for the proposed use or subject site.
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EconomicImpacts
Economic Impacts: Not applicable.
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EnvironmentalConsiderations
Environmental Considerations: The Community Development Department, Environmental Planning Services has reviewed this project and determined that it is exempt from the provisions of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) pursuant to CEQA Guidelines Section 15301, Existing Facilities (Categorical Exemption - Class 1) and Section 15061(b)(3), Common Sense Exemption.
Class 1 includes projects involving the operation, permitting, and licensing of existing facilities and involves negligible or no expansion of use beyond that existing at the time of the lead agency’s determination. The project qualifies for this exemption because no physical changes are proposed to the existing structure as the sale of alcohol at this location is already occurring.
A Section 15061(b)(3) exemption applies if an activity is covered by the common sense exemption that CEQA applies only to projects which have the potential for causing a significant effect on the environment. Where it can be seen with certainty that there is no possibility that the activity in question may have a significant effect on the environment, the activity is not subject to CEQA.
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Sustainability
Sustainability: Not applicable.
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Commission/Committee Action
Commission/Committee Action: Not applicable.
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RationaleforRecommendation
Rationale for Recommendation: Staff recommends that the Planning and Design Commission make a motion to approve the requested entitlements based on the findings of fact and subject to the conditions listed within Attachment 3. The proposal complies with the goals and policies of the 2040 General Plan in that the project is appropriate for the site characteristics and is compatible with surrounding uses in the neighborhood. The request would not establish a new alcohol outlet within the neighborhood; rather, it would authorize an existing off-sale alcohol retailer that has operated under a Type-20 ABC license since February 2024 and expand the existing authorization to include distilled spirits. As part of the request, the operator proposes to modify the existing floor plan by reducing the number of coolers devoted to beer and wine sales from seven to five, adding additional coolers for fresh food, and installing approximately 30 square feet of shelving behind the register for the display of distilled spirits. The existing operating hours of 9:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m., seven days per week, will remain unchanged. Accordingly, the proposal will not increase the number of alcohol retailers serving the area or materially change the site's long-established function as a neighborhood market.
The project has been conditioned to address potential impacts to the neighboring uses by requiring a Video Assessment and Surveillance System (VASS) covering points of sale, alcohol display areas, store entrances, and parking areas to deter theft and unauthorized consumption. In addition, a condition has been included to encourage ongoing communication between the operator and the surrounding community should any issues or concerns arise.
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FinancialConsiderations
Financial Considerations: Not applicable.
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