ZF #2023-047: Consider a request for a Cannabis Use Permit to allow issuance of a cannabis cultivation license for up to one acre of canopy and a retail non-storefront (delivery) license for Yolo Green, LLC, and determine the project falls within the scope of the previously certified Yolo County Cannabis Land Use Ordinance Environmental Impact Report and no further environmental review is required under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). The project is located on a ±7.89-acre agriculturally zoned parcel at 17805 County Road 85C, approximately 0.4-miles south of the unincorporated community of Esparto (APN: 049-170-040). (Applicant: Jeff Raven/Owner: David Raven) (Planner: Tracy Gonzalez)

That the Planning Commission:

The proposed Cannabis Use Permit, if approved, will contain an extensive set of conditions that will regulate the use of the property to conduct cannabis cultivation and retail non-storefront uses. The allowance of up to one acre of cannabis canopy for Yolo Green, LLC (“Yolo Green”), will allow the operator to continue to compete in the regulated cannabis industry. The retail non-storefront use will allow Yolo Green to deliver cannabis goods to customers through delivery only. The project, as conditioned, is in compliance with the Countywide General Plan, Cannabis Land Use Ordinance, and Yolo County Code.

The project site is a 7.89-acre agriculturally zoned parcel, located approximately 0.4 miles south of the unincorporated community of Esparto. Yolo Green has been cultivating cannabis annually under validly issued County and State licenses since 2017, and has maintained State and County licenses to allow up to one acre of cannabis canopy. Yolo Green has continuously cultivated cannabis since 2017. Cannabis related uses are clustered within a 1.7-acre footprint on the southern half of the project site within a previously disturbed area with a gravel access road. The remaining 6.2 acres are flat and not intended for cannabis uses. Structures not used for cannabis uses include an 1,899 SF residence occupied by the owner of Yolo Green, a 5,000 SF barn, a dog kennel, and water storage tanks for irrigation. The property is served by an existing private well and a septic system. Access to the property is via a 32-foot-wide gravel driveway along the northern boundary of the project site, which also extends over the northern border of Assessor’s Parcel Number (APN) 049-170-040 to the west (under separate ownership) via recorded easement. The surrounding land uses are zoned A-N and are generally in agricultural production.

Yolo Green is seeking to obtain a cannabis cultivation license for the continuation of one acre of cannabis cultivation canopy, and the issuance of a retail non-storefront (delivery) license, which would provide additional business opportunity for the operator. The retail non-storefront license would allow Yolo Green to sell cannabis goods to customers only through delivery. The majority of large bulk transactions will continue to be handled by an offsite licensed distributor for testing and storage, but Yolo Green may deliver directly from the operation. On-site cannabis related structures include an outdoor cultivation area (i.e., hoop houses) a compost area, a 5,184 SF greenhouse, and a 1,920 SF processing facility for storage, trimming, drying, and packaging. Yolo Green proposes to construct 16 greenhouses (each ±3,000 SF) and install an ADA restroom for employees. The proposed greenhouses would be constructed on the southern half of the project site where the existing outdoor cultivation area is located. Cannabis waste would be composted on-site and/or disposed of in compliance with County and State regulations. As required by the CLUO, the applicant has prepared a security plan for the project site. The operation will maintain adequate utilities, access roads, drainage, and sanitation infrastructure in line with County and State regulations, standards, and specifications. All exterior lighting is required to be full cut-off, shielded, and downward facing to prevent spill over onto other properties, structures, or the night sky.

Although Yolo Green proposes to relocate the existing cultivation canopy indoors, Yolo Green does not anticipate the addition of any new employees beyond the one existing full-time employee and one to six seasonal 1099 labor contracts. Yolo Green anticipates between 20 and 30 combined deliveries per year related to material deliveries/worker trips. Yolo Green also anticipates between 20 and 30 annual deliveries for retain non-storefront sales and approximately six to eight annual trips for distribution. To avoid a lapse in State and County licensing, the Licensee may continue to cultivate outdoors for up to one year from the date of Use Permit approval while obtaining all relevant permits to construct the proposed greenhouses.

The proposed project has been reviewed for consistency with the Countywide General Plan and the County Zoning Regulations, including the Cannabis Land Use Ordinance (CLUO). The proposal is also consistent with the CLUO Environmental Impact Report, and no further environmental review is required under the California Environmental Quality Act. As explained below, the project, as conditioned, is consistent with all applicable plans, policies, and regulations.

The project, as conditioned, is consistent with the Countywide General Plan. The requested use is proposed on property designated as Agriculture (AG) in the Countywide General Plan. Cannabis cultivation which includes activities involving the planting, growing, harvesting, drying, during, grading, storing, and trimming of cannabis grown on site are called out as agricultural activities under the AG land use designation (Policy LU-1.1, and Table LU-4). Further, Policy AG-3.22 reads:
 

Based on statewide and local voter support, accept cannabis cultivation, nurseries, processing, manufacturing, retail, and microbusiness operations as a new agricultural opportunity in support of agricultural economic development, preservation of agricultural land, and creation of opportunities for new farmers. Recognize unique challenges, and competing and evolving community values, by allowing for adaptive regulatory considerations over time.
 

The project furthers policies in the Countywide General Plan that seek to promote a healthy and competitive farm economy to expand the County’s agricultural base, including Policy AG-3.2, which encourages processing on agricultural land subject to appropriate design review and development standards, and Policy AG-3.12 that promotes marketplace-initiated conversion from lower to higher value-added crops and agricultural commodities. The project, when considered as a component of the County’s cannabis industry as a whole, furthers Policy AG-5.1 which promotes markets for locally and regionally grown and/or prepared food and other products and services.

The subject property is zoned Agricultural Intensive (A-N). Pursuant to Article 3, of Chapter 2, of Title 8 of the Yolo County Code, cannabis cultivation, processing, and distribution are allowed in the A-N zone upon issuance of a Cannabis Use Permit. The project meets the development requirements and setbacks prescribed for the A-N zone.

As part of the application review process, staff conducted a thorough review of the project against the applicable provisions of the CLUO. The project, as conditioned, is determined to be in compliance with the CLUO. The applicable provisions of the CLUO are included as conditions of approval (Attachment E). The operators are required to submit an annual report on July 1 of each year starting the first July in the year after permit issuance documenting compliance with the Cannabis Use Permit requirements.

As described above, the project involves the continuation of one acre of cannabis cultivation canopy. Yolo Green proposes to relocate the outdoor cultivation area (hoop houses) indoors (i.e., greenhouses; each ±3,000 SF), and construct an ADA compliant restroom for employees. The project site is served by PG&E and the project is conditioned to achieve Valley Clean Energy ultra-green or equivalent standard (100 percent renewable and 100 percent carbon-free) within six months of project approval. The project is also conditioned to require the use of LED lighting or equivalent or more efficient technology. Indoor lighting is required to be fully controlled so that minimal or no light escapes by shrouding greenhouse structures (internal blackout curtains). Outdoor lighting is required to be full cut-off, shielded, and downward facing so it does not spill over onto other properties, structures, or the night sky.

The CLUO addresses odor impacts through limiting the location of cannabis uses, and establishing buffers for outdoor cannabis uses, odor control requirements, and enforcement procedures. However, while these measures may minimize the likelihood of nuisance odors, the potential for odors to occur remains and was considered a significant and unavoidable impact in the CLUO EIR. The applicant submitted an odor control plan that describes the odor emitting activities and the administrative and engineering controls to reduce and control odors to the greatest extent possible, such as misting nozzles in the greenhouses. If odor nuisances are verified pursuant to the enforcement procedure set forth in the CLUO, the operator may install and maintain the following: an exhaust air filtration system with odor control that effectively minimizes internal odors from being emitted externally; an air system that creates negative air pressure between the facilities interior and exterior so that odors outside of the facility will not exceed the less than 7:1 D/T standard; or other odor control system/methods which effectively minimizes odor to a level compliant with the allowable threshold. The odor control plan identified annual prevailing winds from the southwest of the project site, with a secondary component from the north. No residences were identified southwest or north of the project site to be considered materially affected, per the Odor Control Plan. However, it should be noted that one residence is approximately 145 FT east of the project site, and another residence is approximately 275 FT to the west.

The site is served by a private well, a septic system, and five 2,500-gallon water storage tanks for irrigation. The applicant estimates that approximately 1,200,000 gallons (or approximately 3.68 acre-feet) of water per year. The CLUO EIR analyzed groundwater that would be used for cannabis crops and compared that to average groundwater use for other non-cannabis crops. The analysis demonstrated that the amount of groundwater used for cannabis activities under each of the CEQA Alternatives would be similar to the amount used for other crops likely to be grown on the property in the absence of contemplated cannabis uses. The high end of the analysis estimated the cumulative use of all cannabis operations in the County could reach 424-acre feet per year, which equates to approximately the average groundwater used by an orchard of about 131 acres.

The project site is located in an agriculturally zoned area approximately 0.4 miles south of the unincorporated community of Esparto. The cannabis activities currently occupy approximately 1.7 acres of the site, and the remaining 6.2 acres are used for non-cannabis activities. The project site is generally flat and surrounding land uses are generally agricultural; row crops to the north and south, orchards to the east, and pasture to the west.

The cultivation area is located on the southern half of the property and the 16 proposed greenhouses will be constructed in the same footprint where the existing outdoor cultivation area is located within hoophouses. The property includes screening along the northern, western, and eastern borders provided by dense oak trees, as well as corral fencing along the perimeter boundary. However, the southern portion of the property is visible from County Road 85C to the southwest, which is approximately 390 feet from the property boundary. The proposed greenhouses will maintain the existing 20-foot setback from the eastern property line and 30-foot setback from the western property line and not encroach further towards any offsite agricultural homesites. The operator has prepared a security plan and will implement measures to secure the property, such as security cameras, motion detectors, alarms, and administrative controls. The operator also is required to provide property owners within 1,000 feet of the property line with an operable method of communication with a local or on-site responsible party having prompt access to the site, operations, and activities. This requirement facilitates communication between neighbors related to conditions at the site and operation of the activities.

All existing structures used for cannabis activities, including the existing 1,920 SF processing facility, and 5,184 SF greenhouse, meet the setback requirements for the A-N zone. Building setbacks for new structures (i.e., 16 greenhouses and a new ADA compliant restroom), as shown on the site plan  in Attachment B, meet the setback requirements for new structures in the A-N zone and will be reviewed upon submission of building permit(s).

The project does not meet the buffer requirements from sensitive land uses as set forth in the CLUO. For existing licensees outside the Capay Valley, the required buffer requirement for outdoor cannabis uses from offsite individual legal residences in non-residential zones is 600 feet, measured from the closest point of any outdoor area containing cannabis. Yolo Green proposes to relocate the outdoor cannabis cultivation area (hoop houses) indoors to satisfy all CLUO buffer requirements from sensitive land uses. The nearest agricultural homesite (to the east) is approximately 145 feet from the proposed outdoor cultivation area, and the nearest residential homesites within the unincorporated community of Esparto are approximately 0.5-miles to the north. By relocating indoors, Yolo Green would comply with the minimum 100-foot buffer requirement for existing licensees to off-site individual legal residences in agricultural zones. The applicable provisions of the CLUO are included as conditions of approval.

Pursuant to Policy CO-2.22 of the Yolo County General Plan, and as codified in the CLUO and included in the Conditions of Approval, no new development requiring a building permit, including grading activities, shall be located within 100-feet of waterbodies or watercourses. The project is in compliance with this requirement as the proposed project is more than 100 feet away from the nearest waterbody or watercourse (Townsend Drain) to the north.

The Department of Community Services, Cannabis Unit, maintains compliance and complaint history dating back to 2019 when the cannabis program moved from the Agriculture Department to the Department of Community Services. The operator has not received a Notice of Violation from the Cannabis Unit, nor have any nuisance complaints been lodged against the operator with the Cannabis Unit.

Staff coordinated with the County Department of Financial Services to produce a history of cannabis and property tax payments for the site, which verified that Yolo Green and the property owner, are up to date on their property taxes and cannabis taxes.

The Cannabis Land Use Ordinance Environmental Impact Report (CLUO EIR) was prepared as a programmatic EIR for adoption of the CLUO and to support streamlined review of individual permit applications pursuant to CEQA Guidelines Sections 15168, 15162, and 15183. If the County finds that an individual project is within the scope of the CLUO EIR, its environmental impacts are adequately addressed in the CLUO EIR, and applicable mitigation measures are applied to the project, then no further environmental review is required. Staff prepared a project-specific CLUO Program EIR Checklist / Project Initial Study (Attachment C) that examines the conclusions reached in the CLUO EIR for each relevant CEQA impact category identified in the CLUO EIR and Appendix G of the CEQA Guidelines. Staff determined that the proposed project activities are within the scope of the CLUO EIR, and that no additional environmental review is required.

A Request for Comments was distributed to reviewing agencies on September 6, 2024. Comments received from reviewing agencies were incorporated into the Conditions of Approval (Attachment E) where applicable. A Courtesy Notice was also distributed on September 6, 2024, to the Planning Division’s interested parties list and mailed to property owners within 1,000 feet of the property boundary of the subject parcel. The Courtesy Notice summarized the existing and proposed operations as provided in the application materials. Staff received two response from members of the public expressing concerns related to odor, traffic, safety, stormwater runoff, and County noticing requirements.

The project site is located within the boundary of the Esparto Citizens Advisory Committee (CAC) comment area and was presented to the Committee on March 18, 2025. The meeting was attended by staff, the applicant, and several members of the community. The committee’s discussion centered around buffers, the basis of the request for only one acre of cannabis canopy instead of expanding up to two acres, the request for a non-retail storefront (delivery) license, pesticide usage, proposed security, and relocating the operation indoors. Given the site has no record of violations or formal odor complaints, the committee recommended a unanimous approval of the use permit by a vote of 6-0 by the members in attendance (two members were absent from the meeting and one member left the meeting prior to the vote).

The Yolo County Agricultural Commissioner’s Office responded on February 28, 2025, with no comments regarding compatibility issues, as cannabis has largely been grown on the southern half of the parcel since 2017 and proposes to relocate the outdoor cultivation canopy indoors. The Agricultural Commissioner did acknowledge that the applicant will be required to maintain an Operator ID for pesticide use issued by the Agricultural Commission prior to any application of pesticides. Yolo Green would also be responsible for all employees who apply pesticides, requiring that employees must hold a current Private Application Certificate (PAC) or Qualified Applicator License (QAL), follow all applicable pesticide laws and regulations, and all pesticide use must be reported to the Agricultural Department by the 10th of the following month that the application took place.

A public hearing notice was mailed to property owners within 1,000 feet on March 27, 2025, and published in the Davis Enterprise on March 30, 2025.

Staff consulted with the Agricultural Commissioner’s Office,  Department of Financial Services, Building Division, Public Works Division, Environmental Health Division, various agencies and interested parties, and has received input from the Office of County Counsel.

Any person who is dissatisfied with the decisions of this Planning Commission may appeal to the Board of Supervisors by filing a notice of appeal with the Clerk of the Board within fifteen (15) days from the date of the action. A Planning Commission Appeal Form and appeal fee immediately payable to “County of Yolo” must be submitted at the time of filing. The Board of Supervisors may sustain, modify or overrule this decision. The Planning Commission Appeal Form can be accessed at the following link: https://www.yolocounty.org/government/board-of-supervisors/clerk-of-the-board/planning-commission-appeal