REPORT TO CITY COUNCIL
To:Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
From:Jason Simpson, City Manager
Prepared by:Damaris Abraham, Community Development Director Date:October 14, 2025
Subject: Notice of Decision – Planning Commission Approval of Planning Application No. 2019-31 (Blazed Utopia) for a Minor Industrial Design Review with a Variance to Legalize an Unpermitted Storage Shed, Construct an Attached Patio and Fire Riser Room, and Reduce the Rear Yard Setback for an Existing Cannabis Business Located at 233 West Minthorn Street
Applicant:Rahman & Associates
Recommendation
Receive and file the Notice of Decision for Planning Application No. 2019-31 approved by the Planning Commission on September 16, 2025.
Background
Planning Application 2019-31 is a request for a Minor Industrial Design Review (IDR No. 2025- 04) to legalize an unpermitted storage shed and construct a new outdoor patio and fire riser room for an existing cannabis business, Blazed Utopia. In addition, the project includes a request for a Variance (VAR No. 2025-01) to reduce the required rear yard setback for the proposed accessory structures. More specifically, the project requests approvals for the following:
Unpermitted Storage Shed:
oMinor IDR to legalize the 392 square foot storage shed previously constructed without an approved building permit
oVariance to reduce the rear yard setback from 15 feet to 3.5 feet Outdoor Patio:
oMinor IDR to allow construction of a new 373 square foot outdoor patio oVariance to reduce the rear yard setback from 15 feet to 9.4 feet Fire Riser Room:
PA 2019-31 (Blazed Utopia)
oMinor IDR to allow construction of a new 21 square foot fire riser room No other building additions or changes in land use(s) are being requested as part of the Minor IDR and Variance. The applicant has indicated that these additions for the accessory structures are necessary to support the ongoing cannabis business, including its cultivation facility.
The applicant requested a variance due to the physical hardship based on the unique irregular shaped lot, narrow depth of the lot, and grade difference in the topography that would preclude them from having the same rights as the surrounding properties. Furthermore, the property is fully developed with an industrial building that has been constructed and occupied which creates an additional difficulty for the applicant to strictly comply with the rear yard setback.
The subject property is located on a 1.37-acre property that is at the northeasterly edge of West Minthorn Street between the intersections of Spring Street and West Minthorn Street and Collier Avenue and West Minthorn Street in the Limited Manufacturing District (M-1). The project site’s address is 233 West Minthorn Street which includes Assessor Parcel Number (APN) 377-220- 024. The property contains an approximately 17,000 square-foot single-story industrial building that is currently being used as a cannabis business with cultivation, manufacturing, and retail uses.
On September 16, 2025, the Planning Commission, by a 3-2 vote, took the following actions:
1. Found that the proposed project is exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) pursuant to CEQA Guidelines Section 15303 (Class 3: New Construction or Conversion of Small Structures) and Section 15305 (Class 5: Minor Alteration in Land Use Limitations);
2. Adopted A RESOLUTION OF THE PLANNING COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF LAKE ELSINORE, CALIFORNIA, APPROVING MINOR INDUSTRIAL DESIGN REVIEW NO. 2025- 04 TO LEGALIZE AN EXISTING 392 SQ. FT. ATTACHED STORAGE SHED AND CONSTRUCT A NEW 373 SQ. FT. ATTACHED PATIO AND A 21 SQ. FT. FIRE RISER ROOM LOCATED AT 233 WEST MINTHORN STREET (APN: 377-220-024); and
3. Adopted A RESOLUTION OF THE PLANNING COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF LAKE ELSINORE, CALIFORNIA, APPROVING VARIANCE NO. 2025-01 TO ALLOW A
REDUCTION OF THE REQUIRED REAR YARD SETBACK FOR THE PROPOSED PATIO FROM 15 FEET TO 9.4 FEET AND FROM 15 FEET TO 3.5 FEET FOR THE PROPOSED STORAGE SHED LOCATED AT 233 WEST MINTHORN STREET (APN: 377-220-024).
Discussion
The Planning Commission voted 3-2 to approve the project with a modification to Condition of Approval No. 10 at its regular meeting on September 16, 2025. The Commission specifically requested a condition be revised or added to address the noncompliant signs currently installed at the existing cannabis business. Condition of Approval No. 10 has been revised to require any PA 2019-31 (Blazed Utopia)
existing non-compliant and/or unpermitted signs to either be removed or brought into compliance prior to the issuance of a building permit. No written or oral public comments were received.
The Planning Commission’s decision is final, and no action by the City Council is required unless the City Council, by majority vote, elects to review and reconsider the Commission’s decision by ordering the matter set for a future noticed public hearing according to Section 17.410.110.F of the Lake Elsinore Municipal Code (LEMC), or the applicant or an interested person files a complete appeal application within 15 days of this notice appearing on the City Council’s Agenda.
Fiscal Impact
The time and cost related to processing this application have been covered by fees paid for by the applicant. No General Fund budgets have been allocated or used in the processing of this application. Project approval does not fiscally impact the City’s General Fund. Mitigation to protect the City fiscally have already been included in the Conditions of Approval.
Attachments
Attachment 1 – Planning Commission Staff Report
Exhibit A – Revised Conditions of Approval