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REQUEST FOR CONSIDERATION OF AN APPEAL FILED BY PRIDE TRUCK SALES, LP OF THE PLANNING COMMISSION'S DENIAL OF AN ADMINISTRATIVE INTERPRETATION OF NONCONFORMING TRUCK SALES USE AT 2546 TURNPIKE ROAD (APN: 165-261-25 & 165-261-26) (P26-0148)
recommended action
RECOMMENDATION
It is recommended that the City Council uphold the Planning Commission’s interpretation of the Development Code that determined the former truck sales and other truck-related uses are not recognized as legal nonconforming uses at 2546 Turnpike Road (APN 165-261-25 & 165-261-26), and that the nonconforming use was voluntarily terminated by discontinuance and cannot be re-established.
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Summary
Pride Truck Sales, LP (herein Applicant) is appealing the Planning Commission’s July 9, 2026, determination that the truck-sales use at 2546 Turnpike Road is no longer a legal nonconforming use. (Attachment A - Location Map and Aerial Photo).
The use in question, Truck and Trailer sales, was recognized as legal nonconforming in 2018 when the City issued a business license to Pride Truck Sales, LP. At that time, the property was zoned Industrial, General (IG). The property was subsequently rezoned to Residential, Low Density (RL) in 2022 to achieve General Plan (Low Density Residential use) consistency, and the use retained its legal nonconforming status (Attachment B - Zoning Map).
The Applicant failed to renew its City business license, which expired on September 30, 2024. Under SMC Section 5.04.040(B), it is unlawful to conduct commerce without a valid business license; therefore, legal operation ceased upon expiration.
Based on the following, staff concluded that the nonconforming truck-sales use was discontinued for at least one year and the use lost its legal nonconforming status pursuant to Stockton Municipal Code (SMC) Section 16.228.060(C):
• The Applicant’s business license for truck and trailer sales expired September 30, 2024.
• A valid business license is required to legally conduct sales within the City. Therefore, the truck-sales use could no longer legally operate after the license expired.
• The Applicant did not renew the license, request an extension of the nonconforming use, or otherwise contact the City regarding continuation of the use for a period of over one year from the business license expiration on September 30, 2024.
• On September 30, 2025, the use had been discontinued for one continuous year. Therefore, the use lost its nonconforming status pursuant to SMC Section 16.228.060(C).
• The Applicant did not contact the City regarding the nonconforming status until January 2026, more than 15 months after the business license expired.
• Activities such as truck storage, property maintenance, voluntary environmental remediation, security, utilities, and marketing the property for sale do not constitute the continued operation of the specific nonconforming use of truck sales.
On June 5, 2026, the Applicant filed an application for a Community Development Director’s Determination per SMC Section 16.228.020(A)(4) to obtain a formal determination. The request for determination was forwarded from the Director to the Planning Commission in accordance with SMC Section 16.08.030(E), and the matter was brought before the Planning Commission on July 9, 2026. The Planning Commission considered the Applicant’s position statements and voted 6-0 (1 absent) to uphold the Director’s interpretation that the legal nonconforming truck-sales use had been voluntarily discontinued.
On July 17, 2026, the Applicant filed an appeal of the Planning Commission’s interpretation of the Development Code, and requests that the City Council reconsider their evidence and find that the truck sales use be recognized as a current legal nonconforming use at 2546 Turnpike Road. The applicant asserts the following:
• Expiration of a business license does not constitute a discontinuation of use.
• Maintenance of the site constitutes a continuation of the nonconforming truck sales use.
• Bankruptcy proceedings constitute an involuntary discontinuance of use.
DISCUSSION
Background
For more than 25 years, the property has been used for trucking-related activities. Truck sales were documented as early as 1998 and were legally established under the property’s former zoning.
In 2018, the City recognized the Applicant’s truck and trailer sales as a legal nonconforming use. The City’s 2018 correspondence advised the Applicant that the use needed to continue operating to retain its legal nonconforming status, and strongly recommended a new owner/tenant obtain a business license and self-document the commencement of use (Attachment C - 2018 Business License Approval).
Under the City’s 1990, 2008, and 2018 Envision Stockton 2040 General Plans, the property has been designated Low Density Residential.
On January 27, 2022, the property was rezoned from IG to RL as part of the City’s General Plan consistency rezoning program. The rezoning was done with advance notice sent to the property owner at the address identified in the County Assessment records. The property’s truck sales use retained its legal nonconforming status with the zoning change.
On September 30, 2024, the Applicant’s business license expired. The City had mailed a renewal notice to the address on file (i.e., listed on the business license) approximately seven weeks earlier. On November 7, 2024, the property owner’s realtor contacted the City regarding the continuation of the use. Staff advised that the truck-sales use was nonconforming and that the new owner needed to obtain a business license and continue the use because the nonconforming rights would expire after 12 months of inactivity (Attachment D - City Correspondence). Staff did not receive any further communication regarding the use until January 2026, over one year after the relator’s inquiry.
On September 30, 2025, one year after the expiration of the business license, the nonconforming status was deemed to have been voluntarily discontinued based on one (1) year of inactivity. This determination was made because, in accordance with SMC Section 16.228.040(c), nonconforming uses are only allowed to continue if operated lawfully. Upon the expiration of the business license, the business was no longer legally authorized to conduct sales due to the business license requirement in SMC Section 5.04.040(B).
In January 2026, the Applicant requested that the City recognize the nonconforming status of truck-uses on the site for the purpose of selling the property. At this time, the applicant was informed by staff that the nonconforming status had been lost and could not be re-established because the nonconforming use had not been present on site for a period over one (1) year, as indicated by the expired business license.
On June 5, 2026, the Applicant filed an application (P26-0148) for a Director’s Determination to establish the truck sales use as a legal nonconforming use, per SMC Section 16.228.020 (Attachment E - Request for interpretation of the Development Code). The request for determination was forwarded from the Director to the Planning Commission in accordance with SMC Section 16.08.030(E), and the matter was brought before the Planning Commission on July 9, 2026. The Planning Commission considered the Applicant’s request and voted 6-0 (1 absent) to determine that the truck-sales use had been voluntarily discontinued and could not be re-established as a nonconforming use (Attachment F - Planning Commission Resolution 2026-07-09-0601).
Present Situation
Appeal
The current request is an appeal of the Planning Commission’s determination regarding the nonconforming status of truck sales at 2546 Turnpike Road (Attachment G - Appeal Letter and Supplemental Information). The Applicant asserts that the Planning Commission did not adequately address their position, and that uses persisted on site to retain the nonconforming status, thereby allowing truck sales to be legally reestablished.
STAFF ANALYSIS
The historic nonconforming use is not in dispute. Truck sales were legally established on the property and were recognized as a legal nonconforming use when the Applicant was granted a business license in 2018. The current issue is whether the nonconforming rights for truck sales on the subject property were lost through discontinuance.
The Applicant’s appeal primarily relies on three main arguments:
• Expiration of the business license does not automatically discontinue the nonconforming use.
• Property maintenance and trucks remaining on-site demonstrate continued use.
• Bankruptcy and related activities resulted in involuntary discontinuance.
SMC Section 16.228.060(C) provides that a nonconforming use loses its status when it is ceased or discontinued for a continuous period of at least one year, unless an applicable extension is granted.
Truck sales require a valid City business license to legally operate. The Applicant’s business license expired on September 30, 2024, and was not renewed. Accordingly, the Applicant no longer had legal authorization to conduct truck sales on the property after that date. The Applicant also did not request an extension or demonstrate a good-faith effort to continue the nonconforming use. Therefore, on September 30, 2025, the use had been discontinued for one continuous year, and the nonconforming status was therefore lost.
The Applicant’s ability to possibly obtain or renew a business license upon paying required penalties and fees does not restore a nonconforming land-use right after that right has been lost through discontinuance. The business license and nonconforming use are separate regulatory matters. Once a nonconforming use is discontinued for more than one year, paying penalties does not retroactively establish the land use during the inactive period, and therefore cannot restore the nonconforming rights to the use.
The Applicant asserts that the nonconforming use was continuous because trucks remained on the property and the property was otherwise maintained through truck storage, soil remediation, on-site security, use of utilities, general property maintenance, marketing the property for sale, and real estate negotiations.
Nonconforming uses are, by necessity, narrowly defined. The nonconforming use in question is limited to “Large Vehicle and Equipment Sales, Service, and Rental.” The activities mentioned by the Applicant may demonstrate that the property remained occupied or maintained, but they do not constitute operation of the specific nonconforming use of truck sales. SMC Section 16.228.040(A)(1) allows a nonconforming use to be continued, maintained, sold, or transferred. It does not allow unrelated activities on the property to preserve a nonconforming use. Similarly, the presence of trucks after the business license expired does not establish that truck-sales operations continued. If sales are not legally authorized to occur on site (because a business license has expired), the use is not being maintained.
The Applicant asserts that the discontinuance was involuntary because of bankruptcy proceedings and the subsequent removal of trucks. Under SMC Section 16.228.060(C)(2), an involuntary discontinuance can only occur when a nonconforming use ceases for reasons other than the owner’s voluntary decision to discontinue the use, such as stop-work orders or construction in the right-of-way. In which case, the one-year period for reestablishing the use begins when the owner is notified (by the City) of the requirement to reestablish the involuntarily discontinued use. A business’ insolvency or bankruptcy proceedings are not initiated by the City or another land-use authority and therefore do not establish involuntary discontinuance. Further, the Applicant entered “voluntary insolvency proceedings,” as described in the appeal letter. Any result of these voluntary proceedings is a consequence of the applicant’s voluntary actions and therefore cannot be deemed “involuntary.”
Likewise, the soil remediation conducted at the property between 2021 and 2025 does not change staff’s determination of voluntary discontinuance. The available information does not establish that a governmental agency required the Applicant to cease truck sales as a condition of the remediation; this work was conducted voluntarily by the Applicant to sell the property as part of their voluntary insolvency proceedings.
Planning Commission
On July 9, 2026, the Planning Commission considered the Applicant’s arguments and voted 6-0 (1 absent) to determine that the truck-sales use had been voluntarily discontinued.
The Commission’s interpretation satisfies the three findings required by SMC Section 16.08.030(B):
1. This interpretation is consistent with the applicable provisions of this Development Code.
The truck-sales use was not legally operating for more than one continuous year following expiration of the business license. Re-establishing the use after that period would be inconsistent with SMC Section 16.228.060(C).
2. This interpretation will not be detrimental to the public convenience, health, interest, safety, or general welfare of the City or injurious to the property.
The property is adjacent to residential development. Allowing a discontinued truck-related use to be re-established on the property would be inconsistent with the surrounding residential context and the public welfare. Locating an industrial use adjacent to a residential use has the potential to create adverse impacts on the existing residential population. These impacts include, but are not limited to, air quality, noise, and light and glare.
3. This interpretation will be consistent with the general land uses, objectives, policies, and programs of the General Plan, any applicable specific plan, precise road plan, or master development plan, and the intent of this Development Code.
The property is designated in the General Plan as Low Density Residential and is zoned RL. The property has been designated Low Density Residential under the City’s 1990, 2008, and 2018 Envision Stockton 2040 General Plans. The current zoning was established in 2022 for General Plan consistency. Truck sales are prohibited in the RL zoning district. Further, SMC Section 16.228.010(B) establishes the intent of the nonconforming use regulations to allow existing nonconformities only under limited conditions and ultimately encourage their elimination.
Again, the Applicant let its business license expire on September 30, 2024. The Applicant did not legally conduct truck sales, request an extension, or demonstrate a good-faith effort to continue the truck sales use during the following year. The activities identified by the Applicant (property maintenance, truck storage, environmental remediation, security, utilities, marketing, and real estate negotiations) do not constitute continuation of the specific nonconforming truck-sales use per the SMC. Accordingly, the nonconforming use was voluntarily discontinued for more than one year and lost its nonconforming status on September 30, 2025. Unless this appeal is approved, the truck sales use cannot be re-established on the property as a nonconforming use.
Environmental Clearance
This determination is not subject to CEQA as it does not qualify as a “project” as defined in CEQA Guidelines Section 15378.
Public Comments
As of the writing of this staff report, no written comments have been submitted by the public. In anticipation of the appeal, the applicant submitted their entire appeal record to the City Council via the City Clerk on July 17, 2026.
FINANCIAL SUMMARY
The proposed action has no direct financial impact to the City. The site is currently vacant and has had no recorded commercial activity since at least September 2024.
Attachment A - Location Map and Aerial Photo
Attachment B - Zoning Map
Attachment C - 2018 Business License Approval and Letter to Applicant
Attachment D - City Correspondence
Attachment E - Request for interpretation of the Development Code
Attachment F - Planning Commission Resolution 2026-07-09-0601
Attachment G - Appeal Letter & Supplemental Information