Planning Commission
MEETING DATE: 3/7/2018
Title
CASE NO. Conditional Use Permit No. 17-051
APPLICANT: Omega Group Inc., Gayk Akhsharumov
LOCATION: 68031 Ramon Road, Suite No. 103 (APN: 680-190-033)
REQUEST: Consider a Conditional Use Permit application to operate a cannabis business (dispensary with delivery) in a suite within an existing multi-tenant commercial building in the PCC (Planned Community Commercial) Zoning District located at 68031 Ramon Road, Suite No. 103.
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STAFF PLANNER:
Salvador Quintanilla, Associate Planner
RECOMMENDATION:
Recommendation
APPROVE an exemption to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) pursuant to Section No. 15301, Class No. 1 (Existing Facilities).
APPROVE Conditional Use Permit No. 17-051 subject to the attached Conditions of Approval and based on the findings contained in the staff report.
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FINDINGS:
APPROVAL OF AN EXEMPTION TO CEQA based on the findings, the project qualifies as Categorically Exempt under Section No. 15301, Class No. 1 (Existing Facilities) of the State CEQA Guidelines.
APPROVAL OF CONDITIONAL USE PERMIT NO. 17-051, subject to the attached conditions of approval, and based on the following findings:
1. The cannabis business to be located at 68031 Ramon Road, Suite No. 103 in the PCC Zoning District is authorized as a conditional use per the City of Cathedral City Zoning Ordinance, Chapter 9.30.
2. The cannabis business as well as all operations as conducted therein, fully complies with all applicable building, electrical, zoning and fire codes, accessibility requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), and all relevant City and State Law. Staff has reviewed the site and floor plans submitted and determined that, as conditioned herein, the cannabis business will comply with all relevant building codes, zoning, and the ADA.
3. The cannabis business fully complies with and meets all operating criteria required pursuant to State Laws, Chapter 5.88 of the City Municipal Code (CCMC), any other provisions of the CCMC, and any specific, additional operating procedures and measures as may be imposed as conditions of approval in this in this conditional use permit. The applicant has been granted a local license (MCL No. 16-001) in accordance with Chapter 5.88 of the CCMC, and in granting the local license the City Manager determined that the cannabis business was in compliance with all applicable laws regarding the operation of the business.
4. The cannabis business is necessary or desirable for the development of the community, is in harmony with the various elements or objectives of the general plan, and is not detrimental to existing uses or to uses specifically permitted in the zone in which the proposed use is to be located. By allowing cannabis businesses in certain zones, the City Council has determined that cannabis businesses are necessary and desirable for the development of the community, is consistent with the general plan, and will not be detrimental to other uses in the zones.
5. The site for the cannabis business is adequate in size and shape to accommodate such use and any and all of the yards setbacks and walls or fences, landscaping and other features required in order to adjust such use to those existing or permitted future uses on land in the neighborhood. The cannabis business meets all site development standards.
6. The site for the cannabis business relates properly to streets and highways which are designed and improved to carry the type and quantity of traffic generated or to be generated by the proposed use. The cannabis business primary collector street is Ramon Road, which has adequate capacity to serve the limited traffic that will be generated by the use.
7. The issuance of a conditional use permit to the applicant will not result in or add to an excessive concentration of dispensaries as the applicant has been approved for the transfer of an existing dispensary license and would not result in more than twenty dispensaries approved to operate south of Interstate 10.
8. The applicant agrees to comply with any and all of the conditions imposed by the Planning Commission or be subject to a revocation hearing.
BACKGROUND:
City ordinances allow for the establishment of cannabis businesses (dispensaries, cultivation, distribution/transportation and manufacturing sites) within certain zoning districts of the City, subject to a Conditional Use Permit (CUP). The ordinances regulating cannabis businesses are codified at CCMC Chapters 5.88 and 9.108 (the “Ordinance”).
Under the ordinance, cannabis businesses are required to obtain both a cannabis license (local license) and CUP. For the local license, applicants are required to submit various documents such as the ownership structure of the cannabis business, a general description of the products and services to be provided and security and delivery plans. In addition, all owners, directors, officers and persons who are managing or otherwise responsible for the activities of a proposed cannabis business must submit to a background check. The City Manager, or his designee, shall decide whether to approve or deny a local license application.
An application for a transfer of an existing dispensary Local License (Cathedral City Care Collective) to a different location and entity was submitted on October 26, 2017. The CUP was submitted on December 7, 2017. The Local License transfer application was reviewed by staff including the Police Department, the background check completed and the dispensary license granted on December 22, 2017 (see Attachment 5).
The Architectural Review Committee (ARC) reviewed the project on February 21, 2018 and approved the project to move forward to the Planning Commission with a vote of 4-0, incorporating the following comments and revisions:
1. Paint the pop-out on the east side of the building and the band on the north and west sides of the building purple to match the existing tower.
2. Provide additional landscaping and decomposed granite (DG), along the north and west side of the property.
The changes were incorporated into the elevations and landscape plan prior to the Planning Commission meeting. The Planning Commission will take final action on this matter unless it is appealed to the City Council.
ANALYSIS:
The project site is located within the PCC (Planned Community Commercial) Zoning District. The surrounding uses include a U-Haul facility, a retail shopping center, a vacant lot, and an automotive service station, and sharing the site is an existing bowling alley (Palm Springs Lanes). Pursuant to CCMC section 9.108.090, a dispensary may only be located within the PCC (Planned Community Commercial), I-1 (Light Industrial) or CBP-2 (Commercial Business Park) zoning districts.
Furthermore, no dispensary shall be located: a) within six-hundred (600) feet of a school, day care center, or youth center; or b) within two hundred fifty (250) feet of a residential zone or East Palm Canyon Drive. Staff has confirmed that the subject location does not violate any of the applicable location restrictions set forth in the CCMC.
A CUP for a dispensary may only be approved if it would not result in an "excessive concentration" of more than twenty dispensaries being approved to operate south of Interstate 10. As this is not a new license, the CUP is in compliance with Chapter 9.108 and may be considered for approval.
The site has been subdivided into three (3) parcels: one parcel contains the parking lot, another parcel contains the bowling alley, and the remaining parcel contains the multi-tenant commercial building where the dispensary will be located.
The existing two-story building is approximately 19,414 square feet (9,707 square feet per floor) and is comprised of several suites on each floor, with the majority currently vacant. The dispensary will be located on the first floor within one of the existing suites, which will be expanded to include a rear portion of the adjacent suite. The total floor area of the dispensary will be 2,068 square feet, consisting of an office/lunch room, a reception space, a waiting area, a display area and other ancillary space.
There are a number of improvements proposed to the site including the retrofitting of the existing trash enclosure to City standard, designation of a loading area, renovation of the existing landscaping, and slurry sealing and restriping of the parking area immediately fronting the building.
As recommended by the Architectural Review Committee, the pop-out on the east side of the building and the band on the north and west sides of the building will be painted purple to match the existing tower. A metal screen will be installed on the roof to screen the mechanical equipment from the public right-of-way and will be painted in a complementary slate gray color. The storefront frame and windows are not proposed to be changed.
ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSIS:
Categorical Exemption under Section No. 15301, Class No. 1 (Existing Facilities) of the State CEQA Guidelines, allows tenant improvements in existing buildings to be exempt. Since there is no outside expansion, this qualifies for a Class No. 1 Exemption.
NOTE: The City of Cathedral City Planning Department is custodian of the documents or other material, which constitute the record of proceedings upon this decision is based.
PUBLIC NOTIFICATION:
This project and the environmental determination were noticed in accordance with the City Municipal Code and CEQA (see Attachment 6).
ATTACHMENTS:
Attachment 1: Conditions of Approval
Attachment 2: Site Plan/Landscape Plan
Attachment 3: Floor Plan
Attachment 4: Colored Elevations
Attachment 5: Local License
Attachment 6: Public Hearing Notice