Cannabis Regulatory Program
Recommendation Matrix
Current Program
Recommendation
LOCATION REQUIREMENTS
No limit on number of Storefront Retailers or RDC/RDM/RCM Microbusiness cannabis business types. 300-foot separation from residential zone
600-foot separation from:
Park
School providing instruction in kindergarten or any grades 1 – 12 Day care center
Youth center
Childcare center
Child care
In-home (family day care home)
Religious facilities
Drug abuse or alcohol recovery/treatment facility
Location Waiver – Waivers can be considered for unique situation where the literal application of the distance requirement to not reasonable.
Option 1 – Current location requirements +Cap
872 parcels
Reinstate a cap: maximum 14 Storefront Retailers
Eliminate location waiver
Option 2 – Compilation of Feedback + Cap
759 parcels
Reinstate a cap: maximum 14 Storefront Retailers
Eliminate location waiver
Align with Code language for alcohol business location restrictions 300-foot separation from residential zone or use
600-foot separation from:
Public or private academic school for students in kindergarten through 12th grade Nursery school, Preschool, Day-care facility
Public park, playground, recreational area, or youth facility Places of Religious Worship
Excluding religious facilities in IG/IL zones (for business types other than storefront retail and microbusinesses with a retail component) Drug abuse or alcohol recovery/treatment facility
1,000-foot separation between cannabis storefront retailers and/or microbusinesses Option 3 – State requirements* + Business Separation & Cap 2,143 parcels
Reinstate a cap: maximum 14 Storefront Retailers
Eliminates location waiver
Aligns with former State requirement and existing cannabis facility/business separation 600-foot separation from:
Park
School providing instruction in kindergarten or any grades 1 – 12 1,000-foot separation between cannabis storefront retailers and/or microbusinesses *State requirements were amended on 9/27/21 and no longer require a 600-foot separation from K-12 schools and daycare/youth centers.
Option 4 – Planning Commission Recommendation
634 parcels
Reinstate a cap: maximum 14 Storefront Retailers
Retain location waiver
Align with Code language for alcohol business location restrictions 300-foot separation from residential zone or use
600-foot separation from:
Public or private academic school for students in kindergarten through 12th grade Nursery school, Preschool, Day-care facility
Public park, playground, recreational area, or youth facility Drug abuse or alcohol recovery/treatment facility
1,000-foot separation from Religious Facilities
1,000-foot separation between cannabis storefront retailers and/or microbusinesses Current Program
Recommendation
LOTTERY EQUITY PROGRAM
Participating Land-uses:
Cultivation
Microbusiness
Retail Storefront
Volatile Manufacturing
Equity applicant eligibility
Resident of Stockton; and
One of the following: be an MBE/WBE business, live in an opportunity zone, live in the SB 535 disadvantaged area of Kelly Drive neighborhood, or live in a HUD designated area Currently there is no requirement for the equity applicant to remain at least 50% owner of the cannabis business after the operator permit is approved.
Currently there is no requirement for the equity applicant to report annual metrics to the City of tracking purposes.
Currently no financial incentives or technical assistance is provided to equity applicants.
Currently, all applicants, equity and nonequity, shall annually submit an intent to apply with paperwork that proves that the applicant has identified property that meets all City locational criteria and zoning requirements.
Language regarding lottery winners and subsequent use permit application process is unclear.
Currently, if the City determines that the applicant is not progressing, the City notifies the applicant and the applicant has 30 days to meet the next steps.
Remove Cultivation and Volatile Manufacturing from participating land-uses of the lottery. Control roll-out of:
Microbusiness
Retail Storefront
Update Equity applicant eligibility to:
Resident of Stockton for 5 years, AND
Either live in the SB535 disadvantaged area of Kelly Drive neighborhood, or demonstrate low-income status.
Require the equity applicant to remain at least 50% owner of the cannabis business at least 5 years after the operator permit approval.
Provide an “out” clause for financially struggling equity-owned businesses.
Require equity applicant to report annual metrics to the City for tracking purposes.
Provide technical assistance (i.e. small business courses, entrepreneur seminars) and financial incentives (i.e. zero/low interest rate loans or fee waiver) to equity applicants, when resources (i.e. grant funding) are available. The assistance would be provided to anyone who qualifies as an equity applicant (not just the winners of the lottery).
All applicants will be required to submit the address that the applicant intends to use for the commission use permit that meets all City locational criteria and zoning requirements. Recommendation includes a proposed Lottery Application Fee to process and verify lottery applications and proposed locations. Proposed fee would be approximately $200.
Lottery winners are entitled to submit one (1) Commission Use Permit application. Should the use permit be denied, the lottery winner status expires.
All land-use applications are required to be submitted to the City within 90 days (120 days in Option 4) of the date of the notification of winning the cannabis commercial lottery.
Current Program
Recommendation
IMPROVE CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE
Current by-right allowances for pre-existing businesses located throughout Code.
Relocation of Existing Cannabis Businesses – Currently relocating a cannabis business requires a new application. The land-uses participating in the lottery would need to win through the lottery to be able to relocate cannabis business.
Customer Experience Assistance – No specific technology to assist commercial cannabis applicants.
Clarification of Use Permit and Operators Permit Ratio – Current code is silent is a single use permit can authorize multiple operators permits of the same business type.
Align by-right allowances for pre-existing businesses under the same section per land-use and included a clear date establishing the allowance.
Added cultivation as by-right use for pre-existing (pre 7-16-2019) storefront retailers in IL and IG zones only.
Relocation of Existing Cannabis Businesses – Include allowance for relocation of existing cannabis business. Include a condition that the existing cannabis use should relinquish the approval of the existing location through the transaction.
Recommendation includes procuring technology to provide resources and tools for commercial cannabis applicants.
One (1) operators permit will be issued per use permit for the same business type (excludes multiple different business types and by-right uses) ZONING
Retail Storefront – Allowed in Industrial Zones and Commercial Zones (CO, CN, CG, CD, CL) Reference pgs. 35 and 38.
Non-storefront Retail (delivery only) – Allowed in Industrial Zones and Commercial Zones (CO, CN, CG, CD, CL) Reference pgs. 36, 41.
Microbusiness – Allowed in Industrial Zones
Remove Commercial, Neighborhood (CN) zone
Remove Commercial, Neighborhood (CN) zone
Allow Retail/Distributor/Manufacturer (RDM) designation in commercial zones (Commercial, Office (CO), Commercial, General (CG), Large-Scale (CL)), if the retail component of the business floor area is 50% or more and no cultivation activities will take place as a part of the business operations.
Current Program
Recommendation
BUSINESS LICENSE
Cannabis businesses pay an annual business license tax to the City.
Require that cannabis businesses pay a semi-annual business license tax to the City.
Notes:
Black Font – Indicates recommendations as a result of City Council direction/discussions, best practices, and stakeholder input.
Green Font – Indicates recommendations made as a result of the Equity Assessment Report.
Blue Font - Indicates recommendations from the Council Legislation/Environmental Committee.
Purple Font - Indicates recommendations from the Planning Commission.
Red Font – Indicates recommendations from Administrative Services Department (recommendation received after 12/9/21 Planning Commission action).
Attachment C