A plan to put a pharmacy drive-thru at 1217 Cooper Point Road SW faces hurdles over garbage-truck access and potential street-improvement costs.

Olympia's Site Plan Review Committee reviewed the proposal at an Oct. 21 pre-submission conference, The JOLT News Organization first reported.

The project would divide the building now occupied by Abbey Carpets and Floors into space for two tenants.

One would be a pharmacy with a pickup window and drive-thru lane, using an existing window on the building's west side.

The pharmacy operator has not been publicly identified.

Tiffani King, an Olympia engineering plans examiner, told the committee the proposed relocation of the site's garbage enclosure is problematic.

Moving it to the southern end of the property would leave waste-hauling trucks with no way in and out.

"The solid waste trucks will have no way to get into the site, turn around, and then leave the site," King said of the proposed enclosure location.

City solid waste staff floated one alternative.

It would require collection trucks to pull onto 12th Avenue, reverse into the parking lot, move forward to empty the dumpster, and back up again to exit. That layout has not been finalized.

King said the city will require a solid waste scoping meeting to evaluate possible layouts before the project can advance.

Street costs could add up

The project may also trigger street frontage improvements along Cooper Point Road, depending on its final valuation.

King said city criteria allow certain tenant remodel projects to skip frontage work if the construction stays below 25 percent of the overall site value.

The county values the property at roughly $2.5 million, according to King. The building permit application listed an improvement value of about $609,000.

That figure is close to the 25 percent threshold, which would be $625,000 based on the assessed value.

King said staff would need to determine whether the $609,000 figure included proposed parking and other site work before deciding whether the project qualifies for an exemption.

12th Avenue access in question

Access via 12th Avenue poses a separate problem. The road is not a city right-of-way, King said, and easement documents would need to be reviewed to clarify access rights.

The city's meeting record lists the item as "Cooper Point Pharmacy Drive-Through" under file number 26-0756, with information provided at the virtual session. No timeline for a formal permit decision or the required solid waste scoping meeting appears in the public record.