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The San Ramon Planning Commission is set to talk about a proposed hydrogen refueling station at Bishop Ranch Tuesday evening, but a final decision is not expected at the meeting after the project applicant recently submitted revised plans.
The Linde Group, a New Jersey-based energy company, wants permission to build the unstaffed public fueling facility at 2451 Bishop Drive, located on the northern part of Bishop Ranch property currently leased by Toyota.
The proposal calls for the fueling station to be modular in design, with the equipment surrounded by an enclosure, according to Lauren Barr, San Ramon city senior planner.
However, the company revised some of its project plans two weeks ago, after the city scheduled Tuesday’s hearing and posted public notices, according to Barr. The updates include increasing the project size, height and number of vent stacks — all of which require additional review by the city, she said.
“Staff will assess the changes in the context of the initial study/mitigated negative declaration and prepare any necessary revisions,” Barr, referring to the environmental analysis for the project, stated in her staff report to the Planning Commission.
Also at play is an ongoing debate among city officials about whether to amend the city’s zoning ordinance to allow unattended fueling stations.
San Ramon banned such unstaffed facilities in 2010, primarily because of concerns with traditional retail gasoline stations, but the broad rules also apply to stations for alternative vehicle fuels, according to Barr.
Last month, the planning commissioners discussed The Linde Group’s separate request for a zoning ordinance text amendment regarding unattended fueling stations.
The commission ultimately gave its support to an amendment that would allow unstaffed service stations for alternative fuels — but not traditional gasoline stations — contingent upon approval of a land-use permit and based upon the project’s specific conditions and merits, according to Barr.
The San Ramon City Council is scheduled to debate the proposed zoning ordinance amendment at its Oct. 13 meeting.
In light of the recent project revisions and the pending zoning ordinance amendment debate, city planning staff recommends the commission conduct the pre-scheduled public hearing Tuesday evening and then continue the matter to a yet-undetermined future date.
The commission meeting is set to begin at 7 p.m. at San Ramon City Hall, 2222 Camino Ramon.
The unstaffed public hydrogen refuel facility, which would be the first of its kind in the San Ramon Valley, is among a dozen similar projects planned across the Bay Area that have received funding from the California Energy Commission and the Bay Area Air Quality Management District.
“Hydrogen fuel cell vehicles — zero-emission vehicles — convert hydrogen gas fuel into electricity to power an electric motor that propels the vehicle,” Barr wrote in her staff report. “The fuel cell vehicles operate much like an electric vehicle; however they are not constrained by battery vehicle recharge times and have a greater range.”
The San Ramon station would be located adjacent to an existing Toyota warehouse facility and positioned near the south side of Norris Canyon Road. The proposal considers the possibility of a hydrogen line to warehouse to support future hydrogen-powered equipment, such as forklifts, according to Barr.
