The Board of Supervisors Tuesday will consider whether to approve licenses for a proposed cannabis retail outlet in El Cerrito, in the vicinity of a private school, requiring the board to grant a variance for the establishment, which would otherwise be out of compliance with Riverside County regulations.
The Planning Commission was unable to overcome a 2-2 impasse — with one member recusing — in May on whether to recommend approval of the conditional use permit and development agreement with Derek Catalano and his Common Sense dispensary, which is proposed at 19700 Temescal Canyon Road.
The project has been in the works since 2019 and was the subject of a prior board hearing — following a Planning Commission rejection — in September 2021. At that time, the board directed Catalano to reassess the proposed location, expressing concerns over adequate parking, and go through the application process again.
After securing double the number of parking spaces required, Catalano re-applied, leading to the Planning Commission tie vote and the scheduled board hearing, which will be his last resort.
One of the objections by Planning Commission members was the project’s proximity to Olive Branch Christian Academy at 702 El Cerrito Road. Under county Ordinance No. 348, marijuana dispensaries are required to be a minimum of 1,000 feet from any K-12 school. The proposed site is 990 feet from Olive Branch Christian.
Catalano is requesting a variance that would effectively waive the 1,000-foot rule. The board has discretion to grant the 10-foot variance, and that’s what Department of Planning staff are recommending.
If a board majority votes in favor of the proposal, the outlet would be operated on a half-acre lot, within an existing building, complete with a reception area, waiting space, office space and a retail sales desk. The proposed hours of operation are 6 a.m. to 10 p.m., seven days a week. There would be no mobile deliveries from the site.
Under the proposed 10-year conditional use permit and development agreement, Common Sense would be required to make a first-year public benefits payment to the county totaling $26,000. An ongoing annual payment of $38,000 would also be owed, increased 5% every year. The applicant has also indicated willingness to make voluntary $200,000 annual contributions to the El Cerrito Road Fund, according to the Transportation & Land Management Agency.
The public benefit payments are intended to offset the costs to the county of providing additional law enforcement, street maintenance and other services in and around a site.
Since 2020, the board has granted 24 conditional use permits for cannabis businesses in unincorporated communities, seven of which have opened their doors. Operations have been authorized in Bermuda Dunes, Coronita, East Hemet, Green Acres, Highgrove, Lakeland Village, Mead Valley, Temescal Valley, Thousand Palms and Winchester.
Under Ordinance No. 348, which contains provisions of the county’s Marijuana Comprehensive Regulatory Framework of 2018, there are a series of steps laid out that prospective businesses must take to be eligible for permits. Safety and health safeguards are part of the regulatory stipulations.
Under an ordinance approved by the board in March, operators must submit applications to the California Department of Cannabis Control within 60 days of obtaining a conditional use permit from the county. Otherwise, their permits could be revoked. However, there is no deadline for when the state processes and approves or denies an application, which TLMA officials have acknowledged can take almost a year.