New EV dealership proposed for vacant Citrus Heights storefront

By Sara Beth Williams–
A proposal to breathe new life into the vacant building once home to Big Lots could bring an electric vehicle dealership to Citrus Heights, if an amendment to the city’s Auburn Boulevard Specific Plan is approved.

According to an Oct. 25 update, a proposed car dealership would be located in the former Big Lots building, adjacent to the abandoned Studio Movie Grill project. The former site of Kmart, which was once planned to become a Studio Movie Grill, is also currently under review to become a church.

Plans submitted to the city show that the applicant, Brian Holloway of AV Investment, LLC, is requesting to amend the land use table in the Gateway District portion of the Auburn Boulevard Specific Plan to permit new auto sales and rentals. The proposed project wants to convert the large vacant building into a new electric vehicle sales and service dealership, documents state.

The Auburn Boulevard Specific Plan was adopted in 2005 and was intended to “guide the revitalization and enhancement of Auburn Boulevard between Sylvan Corners and Interstate 80,” according to the city. The almost 2-mile stretch of roadway was once part of the Historic Lincoln Highway, otherwise known as State Highway 40.

The Specific Plan includes four areas: the Gateway District, the Lincoln 40 District, Rusch Park District, and Sylvan Corners Village Square District. The project under review seeks to amend the Gateway District portion of the Specific Plan, according to the city.

Listed benefits for allowing a dealership include the “opportunity to reuse and revitalize” an abandoned building, the opportunity for sales of non-polluting vehicles in the city, and the potential for tax revenue for the city, according to the applicant. Plans also indicate that buildings will be repainted and that new landscaping will be installed.

Currently, in the Auburn Boulevard Specific Plan, no vehicle sales and rental or repair uses are allowed on sites without a history of those uses. Sites that can demonstrate they have historically been used for vehicle sales, repair, or rental can be allowed to resume a form of automotive-based use if the property meets specific criteria. Applicants need to be able to prove the existence of automotive-based uses through the following means: the existence of roll-up garage doors, auto lifts, or vehicle display or sales area on the property; through the use of historical photos or aerial images, or a previous business license indicating that the site had an automotive use in the past.

An amendment to the Specific Plan is required to go before the Planning Commission and before the City Council, according to city spokesperson Marisa Brown. A meeting date for the review of the project has not been set.