Retail Pad Space in Mission Viejo

What to diligence before LOI

1. 01

   Drive-thru permit: Municipal Code Section 9.11.015(c)(6) makes drive-thru establishments conditional (C) in CN, CC, CH, CR and OP. Section 9.11.020(c)(4) sets the design: stacking for at least six cars behind the menu board, 12-foot minimum aisle width with a 10-foot inside radius, PCC concrete aisles, landscape screening from the street, a menu board no larger than 24 sq ft and 6 feet tall facing away from the street, and at least 1,750 sq ft of interior floor area for a drive-thru restaurant. Inside an integrated center, the building has to match the center's architecture.

2. 02

   Approval path: a new pad building, or enlarging an existing one, needs a planned development permit under Chapter 9.47 (Sections 9.11.010 and 9.47.015(a) and (b)). The drive-thru CUP goes to the Design Review Committee first, then to a Planning Commission public hearing with the findings in Section 9.48.025, including that the use will not create significant noise or traffic problems for neighbors.

3. 03

   Speaker noise near homes: Section 9.22.025(a) sets exterior limits of 55 dB(A) from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. and 50 dB(A) at night for any use that affects residential property, and lowers both by 5 dB(A) when the noise is speech or music, which covers an order speaker. Any pad that backs up to homes should model speaker placement before the CUP hearing.

4. 04

   Parking: Section 9.25.020 sets restaurants at 1 space per 100 sq ft of public seating area up to 4,000 sq ft (outdoor seating counts), with a 10-space minimum. Banks need 1 space per 200 sq ft plus one lane per drive-up window or ATM with room for 3 cars per lane. The code sets no separate drive-thru ratio, so the stacking lane is on top of the stalls.

5. 05

   Auto service pads: Section 9.11.015 prohibits automobile service centers in CN and CC and makes them conditional in CH and CR. Section 9.11.020(c)(2) adds a 15,000 sq ft minimum site, service bays that do not face the street, and no vehicle work from 8 p.m. to 7 a.m. Monday through Saturday or at all on Sundays.

6. 06

   Traffic: Caltrans' 2024 counts put Interstate 5 through Mission Viejo at 154,900 to 163,800 vehicles a day at Alicia Parkway, 154,900 to 158,300 at La Paz Road, 158,300 to 162,800 at Oso Parkway and 144,200 to 162,800 at Crown Valley Parkway (AADT on each side of the interchange). Those are freeway volumes, useful for freeway-facing sites such as the MV Freeway Center on El Paseo. For arterial counts on Marguerite, Alicia or Santa Margarita Parkway, ask the City's traffic engineer.