 Okay, I'm gonna go ahead and call to order tonight's meeting of the city of Santa Rosa planning commission and ask for roll call please Let the record reflect that all commissioners are present except commissioners Duggan Kalia and Peterson Okay Next we move to the approval of minutes of our February 28th meeting any corrections to our draft Not seeing any those will stand as printed Then next we're going to move on to a time for public comments This is a time for any member of the public to address the commission on matters of interest of the commission That aren't listed tonight as a public hearing. We only have one item as a public hearing So if there's anyone who would like to speak on something other than that I'm going to go ahead and open public comments And if you want to speak you can go to one of the microphones at the top I am not seeing anyone move. So I'm going to go ahead and close our public comment time and move on to Planning commissioners report Any reports tonight? Yeah Commissioner Krapke Yes, all of us with the exception of Commissioner Peterson had the opportunity last week to go down to Long Beach for the Planning Commissioners Academy by the California Association of Cities, I believe is what it's called and had the opportunity to Stay on the debatably haunted Queen Mary and Had a great time bonding with the fellow commissioners as well as attending sessions about density and downtown development Cannabis and the very interesting legislative update of housing bills coming forward. So That was a great opportunity for all of us. I believe Great. Thank you any other Reports I have one to let the Commission know that I did attend Tuesday's Council meeting to be present for the appeal of the be kind dispensary on Sonoma Avenue That was an item that was heard by the Commission back in November that was a Dispensary cannabis dispensary which was appealed basically on the basis of a disagreement with the 600 foot setback from schools And specifically the French American Charter School so I was there to report our our findings our process from our November meeting and the The appeal was basically handled on behalf of the appellant by an attorney Speaking specifically regarding the setback to schools There were way fewer members of the public speaking than I expected so They they had their public hearing and once that was concluded the council comments When I took away from them that they they were very strongly in support of our current cannabis ordinances and Policies and our we're strongly in support of projects that meet those policies so they did uphold our decision With that I will turn it over for department reports. I have nothing to report there are a series of Items before the city council that may be of interest that was so the most recent but This is a reminder April 2nd is our joint planning Commission City Council Meeting where we do an overview of how we're doing in terms of implementing our the city's general plan But we also broaden that presentation to include Highlights some of the developments that have happened the last year and also how we're doing on our housing action plan implementation so I think tentatively it's Two o'clock item because it is a study session, okay. Thank you Next statements of abstention by commissioners Good that there's none We have no study session or consent items tonight So we'll go ahead and move on to our one and only public hearing which is Item 10.1 the green pen dispensary conditional use permit which is an ex parte disclosure and Christopher Carter anything to disclose I Did visit the site, but I've met with no one on the project okay, I also visited the site and Spoke to the developer or the applicant representative but nothing to disclose I Visited the site and also spoke to the applicant's representative of nothing further to disclose and I also visited the site and They had conversation with the applicant's rep representative and have no new information to disclose So with that we'll go ahead and move on to the staff report Adam Ross's city planner give us our staff report. Thank you chair Cisco and commissioners Today the green pen dispensary is a conditional use permit located at 353 college Avenue. I'm Adam Ross the city planner here with the city of Santa Rosa Planning and Economic Development Department The project description includes green pen LLC to operate green pen dispensary a medical and adult use cannabis retail dispensary with delivery services The project also includes a reduced on-site parking Of 50% a total of six spaces The project is at a is located in a 2943 square foot building with 1772 square feet of retail space 338 square feet of storage with the remainder being office employee administration and delivery operations We propose hours of operation or 9 a.m. To 9 p.m. Daily The project is located in the northeast quadrant of in the city of Santa Rosa Off of College Avenue close to highway 101 Who you see the project description? The on the corner of Glen Street and College Avenue to the north is the Ridgeway historic Preservation district and to the south is Another preservation district and downtown The zoning for this property is at general commercial historic due to its proximity within the Ridgeway historic neighborhood The general plan is retail and business services a bit of the project history On April 20th the application was submitted On May 29th that notice of incomplete application was sent On April 16th the neighborhood meeting was held A response to incomplete letter received By city staff on June 21st on June 27th the application was deemed complete on July 23rd A notice of application was mailed to neighbors and interested parties On October 16th the notification of staff issues was also Sent and then on February 14th staff received the updated application law correct with all issues corrected That actually doesn't explain on March 7th staff received an updated traffic study that Better to find the W trans studies Conclusions This is the site plan showing the project site with the six spaces With the ADA here's Glen Street and the sidewalk. What's not shown is an onsite or on-street loading zone With That is 24 minutes that was installed by the city. It was done during the previous use I'll show that a little bit more in the later slides Here's a floor plan This is the parking area back here. Here's some covered bicycle parking spaces So Glen Street you'd enter here. This is a built-over door. What that means is At one point or another it was built over so it's not an operable It's there. It looks like it's a door, but it's not usable. This is the secured entrance waiting room show ID Be verified for this location. Here's the retail area this door faces the corner of Glen and Glen and college it's going to be for clothes not used The reason for that is it would have to Take away a lot of this area to accommodate for ADA Here's a rendering of the existing site with Different paint, but it doesn't Right now it's green the colors green, but there are no facade Changes for this proposed with this application We have the east elevation right here, which is Glen Street on the corner of that door there the It's fresh coat of paint, but no facade changes So there is a little Issue on our part. I don't have the updated slideshow which has a bit more information So I'm going to switch over that to that right now So we don't have that either right we have to look up there So I'm going to start over from the beginning, but I'll quickly go through the ones that I've already mentioned So what I wanted to start off with was is the cannabis ordinance overview For personal use you have six plants per residence commercial cannabis businesses include medical and adult use dispensaries Cultivation manufacturing level one and two that includes volatile and non-volatile Manufacturing testing laboratory distribution So again with retail dispensary and delivery Micro-business Special event and special events and it was effective January 19th 2018 Cannabis retail means a facility where medical or adult use cannabis or medical and adult use cannabis products are offered Either individually in in any combination It's part of a retail sale for cannabis It includes a state license type 10 the eligible zoning for a retail dispensary is Commercial so co is office commercial CN is neighborhood commercial CG general commercial and commercials serving Shopping it's a shopping center CSC Industrial is business park light industrial and general industrial these setbacks For sent to sensitive receptors include 600 feet to a K through through 12 school and over concentration of 600 feet from each other So deliveries are allowed from a cannabis retail facility with a storefront only you can't just be a delivery location drive-throughs are not permitted general operating hours In the cannabis ordinance within the city is 9 a.m. To 9 p.m Security entry must be visible from the street secured entry secured products secured cash secured delivery on-site consumption is not is allowed provided that they can find a way to get around the smoking ordinance as well as specific requirements in the in the cannabis ordinance, but there is no on-site consumption proposed here For a conditional use permit we have required findings So one is that it complies with the zoning code. It's consistent with the general plan It's compatible with existing and future land uses and The site is physically suitable for the type density and intensity of use It would not constitute a nuisance and its compliance with California Environmental Quality Act So again, this is the project description Projects is located in the northeast quadrant of the city There's an aerial of the project General commercial in a stork win the historic overlay district retail and business service general plan project history site plan floor plan Front elevation east elevation And I wanted to go over the legal non-conformity of the site. So the building was The site was constructed in 1962 per GIS records, and I'll show you an aerial of that and the next slide I believe and the parking requirements were different back then so the site was built with a parking lot that probably wouldn't That wouldn't be to code today And while the building itself may be legal non-conforming the site the use for the site lost its legal non-conforming status Because the previous use has been vacated for more than six months So this is the aerial from this is 1963 per GIS the city's GIS standards There's no increase or decrease in in the parking lot site and here it is on the latest GIS aerial So the total square footage for the site is 2943 square foot square feet and per city code for a cannabis retail dispensary. It's one space per 50 square feet This would equal out to 12 total parking spaces required for the site The total existing parking at the site is six spaces after the removal of an an existing illegal chain link fence that is covering up part of the parking lot So therefore the site has a deficiency of six spaces or 50% This is a feasibility study Parking lot restriping plan provided by the applicant To show that they can successfully fit six spaces including the updated ADA van accessible space for the site zoning code section 20 36 point zero four zero item C2 States that one of buildings use changes to a new use for example a retail to restaurant use Without enlarging the site no additional parking no additional parking is required except to comply with current ADA standards but that usually is a way for us to look at a existing legal non-conforming site and Should the new use be within that six month grace period? We could potentially apply that code to this but in this case because it lost its legal non-conforming status It's not applicable Zoning code section 20 36 point zero five zero C1 a allows by right a parking reduction of up to 10 spaces or 25 percent when Retentening of an older building and site Retenting with a new use Because this is over 25 percent thresholds. We can't apply that parking reduction so again the the next Slide we'll go into how we got how staff has supported this project Because under zoning code section 20 36 Point zero five zero C1 B the review authority may reduce the amount of parking By any amount for a project that requires a conditional use permit after making the following findings So due to special circumstances associated with the operation of the use at the location the proposal and the Proposal will generate a parking demand different from the standards set forth in the zoning code and The number of spaces will be sufficient for its safe convenient and efficient operation and use so a little Reiteration here is the applicant is proposing six parking spaces on site one is ADA compliant as required six employee parking passes are being Proposed to be provided to Staff to encourage them to park at city parking garage number one. It's located at five two one seventh Street It's approximately 1,230 feet away. It's an estimated Seven-minute walk using the safest walking route up Healdsburg Avenue Crossing College Avenue and proceeding to the project site rather than That's without any sort of jaywalking or or using an unprotected crosswalk or a light protected crosswalk. I should say 12 covered bicycle parking spaces are proposed one bicycle parking space is required per code The applicant is providing 12 covered spaces on site There's sidewalk infrastructure and public transit around the site There's an on-street loading space, which was not included in the staff report or the project description but after After further review it's there. It was installed by city traffic engineering And with the conversation with them it would stay. It's not they didn't lose it because it's no longer a legal non-conforming site It's there They can remove it, but I don't think anyone wants to remove it A focused traffic study by W. Trans also concludes that the parking supply provided is sufficient for the use as proposed This is it's a little dark, but this is a An aerial a street view image of what's existing there now So it I don't know if you can see it, but there's this roll-up door right here This is where the covered bicycle parking spaces are going to go This chain link fence will be removed the parking lot will be restriped And this awning here is an illegal non-conforming Portion of the building that would be removed should the use permit be approved staff received Public comments at the April 16 2018 neighborhood meeting Where members of the public came out since then these are all approximate numbers 18 emails several phone calls through written letters Signed by 30 residents from 23 homes in the Ridge Way preservation district which have been supplied to the planning commission as well Concerns were neighborhood compatibility loitering increased crime proximity to schools odors noise traffic and parking So the response some of staff's response to that would be the site is a is in a commercial corridor on College Avenue There are other retail business uses there this site itself Which I'll go over in a in a couple of the other slides It's if you have this location here no matter what the retail spaces There's going to be a parking reduction There are slight variations in the required parking, but a general retail location Requires the same amount of parking as this location The project also includes a security plan and it includes security guards and nightly patrols The six-foot setback to schools and based on the measurement of how the As they would say as the crow flies as 12 as approximately 1,225 feet away from the nearest school and a certified odor mitigation plan was provided that includes administrative and engineering controls So here's a map of the closest schools So you have the project location here. I just outlined the parcels for each school And put a dot there as well So I think believe this is a charter school. This is a private Catholic school I'm and Can't remember there's a school here and then this is Santa Rosa High and another school right here, which I can't remember the name Ridgeway High School again a Focus traffic study and staff findings conclude the site is efficient for the use and provides adequate parking with no significant increase in trip generation There's no on-site consumption proposed with this project proposed deliveries to the Spensary From the dispensary for Customers as 9 a.m. To 9 p.m. Distributed distributor delivery hours are 6 a.m. To 10 p.m. Daily as proposed by the applicant and all other FedEx office supplies larger vehicles Shall be made no earlier than 8 a.m. Daily What's not mentioned here as well is that the in the project description states that? No, if you're a You can have a medical Recommendation to be 18 19 20 21 or older, but it starts at 18 rather than 21 for recreational So you can purchase with the recommendation at 18 as an adult the site will not serve Patrons at the location who are between 18 and 20 so you have to be 21 whether it's a prescription or not They will provide delivery services to those who are 18 to 20 the project is Qualifies for a sequel class one categorical exemption In that it's an existing private structure involving neg negligible expansion of use the project also is A class 3 a sequel class 3 categorical exemption as it involves a change of use where only minor modifications are made to the exterior of the structure As well as a class 32 categorical exemption as an infill development It's consistent with the general plan land use designation and the zoning district. It's less than five acres In size and within the city limits. It's surrounded by urban uses. There's no value For habitat or endangered rare threatened species It's served by necessary utilities and public services and no foreseeable significant adverse impacts to traffic noise air quality or water quality are Involved in the project So it the planning and economic development department Recommends that the planning commission approved resolution CUPA team dash 080 to allow the medical and adult use retail cannabis dispensary with delivery at 353 college Avenue while also including a Approval of a parking reduction an onsite parking reduction of six spaces with the condition that Parking passes to city garage number one be supplied to employees and 12 covered bicycle parking spaces be provided onsite as well Again, I'm Adam Ross city planner and I'm ready to answer any questions you may have the applicant is also here with Representatives as well who worked on the project. Thank you Any clarifying questions of staff right now or I'm sorry was that yeah, we can do that Okay Now we can hear from the applicant. I don't think your mic is on we're not hearing you well. They're great My live now there we go. Yeah, well, I'll just repeat again. Good afternoon chair Cisco members of the commission Thank you for your time and service and attention to this matter. I also want to thank staff for their work very diligent work and helping us work through a number of difficult historic issues and Other elements that I'll touch on briefly in the presentation. I want to take a Moment to acknowledge the neighborhood also the neighborhood meeting for this project which started off a number of the Elements that you see in our proposal was one of the most collaborative ones that I've experienced while I know that there are representatives from the association here in opposition Their comments were well reasoned provided us with important information about existing conditions And I believe led to a superior project at the end of the day So I thank them for their participation and look forward to continuing that relationship once the dispensary is Open hopefully with your approval The staff analysis and work and the staff report that you've received is something that we can currently believe that they've done an Excellent job in representing the project. I do want to acknowledge one clarification from a written response. They gave earlier today To a question from one of the commissioners about the use of an on-site 15-minute parking spot for the delivery vehicle It was before we had received confirmation that we could use the 24-minute parking spot That's off-site. So the delivery vehicles now won't even need to utilize any of the six on-site spaces And at any point in time though we may still mark something as 15 minutes because with no on-site consumption Being proposed. This is not a facility. That's intended for the lingering of customers But is really a retail establishment in the concept of other retail establishments and other industries as well I just want to note that the the historic context of this neighborhood is something that we took very seriously In working with staff and their discovery of the illegal nature of some of the improvements to the building You know while we are proposing no exterior modifications to this building in part to You know maintain the character of it We do look forward to restoring the nature of this building being able to add back in the ADA parking spot That was made unusable with those modifications in the additional parking spot that was blocked from them so we believe that the removal of those improvements is an important aspect of this project and Let's see second to last I just want to cite general plan policy TB2 When we're looking at traffic uses TB2 specifically calls for heavy traffic generating uses which were not but if even if we were a heavy traffic generating use They're supposed to be with direct or immediate secondary access to regional and arterial streets And that's the specific language of the general plan in this project It has immediate secondary access to a regional interior street as defined by the general plan which is College Avenue So I just want to make sure they call that part of the general plan as well as the ones that you know So well, this is a local company that's bringing in a local vertical integration we have two supply chain Businesses that are partnering in part on this through different Through different aspects of it. And so you're not just creating the jobs that are going into this retail environment But you're also creating and supporting the jobs that exist in the cultivation manufacturing In other in distribution aspects of these Santa Rosa-based businesses which directly affects EVB for Which calls for those types of Santa Rosa Santa Rosa strategies Lastly while my personal cell phone number will be available to both neighborhood associations from now until the project opening and As anyone else if there are any issues that come up during that period of time Once the manager is hired for the facility closer to opening their direct number will be provided to the official representatives from all adjacent neighborhood associations to immediately handle any concerns Should they arise but we believe that the condition No, sorry the operating Proposal of having our security guard be available to also go to the alleyway That's a couple doors down from this property will hopefully improve many of the Existing impacts that were noted by the neighbors with that. Thank you for your time and consideration again We concur with staff's Analysis and presentation and recommendation them available as is Cameron Nye with W. Tran's who completed the parking and traffic study trip generation analysis To answer your questions Great. Thank you, and we'll have you come back up again after the public hearing to answer questions too Okay So this is a public hearing tonight. I have multiple cards and so If you haven't been here before I will let you know that I'm going to call your name There are two microphones up there I'll call the name that's going to be speaking and then call the second name so you can begin to queue up I Am a pretty strict timekeeper So I'm going to ask you to pay attention to the little light bar that's in front of you It's going to start with green as you begin your presentation as it gets closer to the three minute deadline It'll go to yellow and when it turns to red and the buzzer goes off I'm going to ask you to stop so you can really keep within that time frame Then I won't have to interrupt you and we'll we'll get the full benefit of your comments It's okay if you hear somebody say something that you agree with You can raise your hand. You may not feel you need to make your own statement to repeat it But what we want to hear what you have to say We don't allow applauding or booing So if you have some agreement raise your hand with it to the speaker And I suppose if you disagree you can do a thumbs down or something but non audible, please Okay, so with that I'm going to go ahead and open our public hearing and first person Is mark Perry followed by Trina de la Chappelle Don't think I'm up here. I'm up Hi, I'm mark Perry. I'm an architect. I live with my wife Catherine at 419 Benton Street I have a special interest in our historic architecture and have been involved in preservation district creation including this preservation district and Design politics and boards and commissions etc. I'm former member president of the Ridgway Historic Neighborhood Association this is a Historic district, which means it's a cultural resource for the city of Santa Rosa and I think it needs to be treated with special attention because it is indeed a cultural resource the whole preservation industry started as a grassroots response of the community to Demolition and excessive effect on the over on our cultural resources I think that too much pressure to advance without careful consideration Can get in the way This has been ill-conceived in my mind The point the parking is horrendous the traffic is horrendous giving parking Credits when it's over overly extended already is Really unbelievable to those of us that live in the neighborhood not only more specifically the proximity to the JC Santa Rosa High School and Ridgway High, which is a continuation school of at-risk children is Highly questionable as well I think there is a much much much better place for this facility than one that clearly is Underparked on a very very busy neighborhood and is resisted by the entire neighborhood We over 24 of us showed up at the meeting I'm kind of surprised that it was went forward with the recommendations of the city, which I guess they don't realize that the neighbors Don't want this It large and I would ask you to please vote no Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Perry Next is Trina de la Chappelle followed by Dustin Maxim Hello hello We can hear you're good. Okay. My name is Trina de la Chappelle and I live around the corner From the site that we're talking about I am here representing a lot of neighbors who work and could not be here I certainly helped that I also wrote a letter and I certainly helped that my time here today and my the time I spent writing my letter Was not a waste of time and it would be if this is a done deal Several things about the parking Is I don't know if I can ask Adam Ross a question, but is there any guarantee that the the employees would actually use those Parking passes and park in the garage. That's seven minute walking distance away Is is there any guarantee that they would not park in our neighborhood? And I can get a response for you after the public hearing. Okay, so that's a concern I have because It feels to me like that's just Put out there to further try to comply with the parking situation Also restriping the parking lot just sounds like we're creating a new parking space out out of thin air If if that parking lot was striped the way it is now that's when cars were smaller and there weren't SUVs I don't really see how they're going to create a new parking space With how big cars are now From what's already there. It is a tiny tiny parking lot And I don't know if those slides accurately show how narrow Glen Street is our neighborhood was built in the 20s 1920s Glen Street When there are cars parked on either side of it, you cannot have cars going in both directions. Somebody has to pull over I'm not sure if the people who are Recommending this understand our neighborhood at all. We have three schools that feed into our neighborhood twice a day three the JC Santa Rosa High and Ridgeway they cut through our neighborhood They think it's a shortcut to get on to college So if you come around 8 a.m. Or 7 30 and 3 o'clock in our afternoon, I cannot get out of my driveway Cars are backed up down every street and we're gonna have delivery trucks now and customers Also College Avenue is not really retail The one that the part of college that borders on our it is offices The only other retail I can think of is a bike shop on the next block their offices It's 50% less parking spaces than it's supposed to have and you're in a residential neighborhood. You're not in an industrial neighborhood. I Mean if you're not going to enforce the the parking zone requirement in this case, are you enforcing it for other businesses? Thank You mrs. Laschappell Next is Dustin Maxim followed by Che castle Hello, everyone. My name is Dustin Maxim and my wife and I own a home on 325 Carrillo Street where you live for the last 16 years We have two boys ages four and six who play on our front lawn 300 feet from the proposed project We ask that you do not approve this project in addition to our concerns including traffic safety and quality of life Many of the findings needed Simply cannot be met for example finding a the project does not comply with many provisions of the zoning in city code If it did a parking reduction would not be needed a 50% parking reduction It's detrimental to both the neighborhood and surrounding businesses. There's an incredible parking shortage in the neighborhood Most homes were built in the 1920s and 40s and have one off-street parking space I am lucky if I can even park on my block every day when I get home from work The zoning code only allows for a 25% reduction the traffic engineers Entire analysis is flawed because it is based on the assumption that six spaces will be utilized in the downtown parking garage This project is being analyzed as if it were downtown commercial But if it were downtown commercial this use would not be allowed It is not reasonable to assume that employees will walk a quarter mile seven minutes in the rain or cold It is also Not reasonable from a personal safety perspective to make that walk in the dark. I know from my own experience Also the proposed reconfiguration of the parking lot does not meet the current parking design standards of section 2630 this includes setbacks turning and turning It also doesn't meet the city's low-impact design requirements or the landscape standards of section 2024 and I do not believe it meets the full accessibility requirements of chapter 11b of the CBC Given the small size of the parking lot in back-up space vehicles will have issues turning and navigating the parking lot Thus creating an unsafe exit Backing up onto the residential street the building and fences appear to conflict with vision triangles required by zoning Section 20 30 these vehicles will not be able to safely exit the parking lot or view pedestrians on the sidewalk I've written you a letter detailing other concerns I have about residential elements of the general plan and I hope that you would consider those as well Whatever the outcome tonight. I'm sure the decision will appeal be be appealed to city council So why not take a stand with the neighbors who actually live in the neighborhood people including myself? Preparing to leave Thank You mr. Maxim and thank you for Doing your letter we do have it Chee Kassoul followed by Arian Zynal Leanne, sorry if that's really terrible pronunciation Good evening. My name is Chee Kassoul and I am the CEO of the Center for Social and Environmental Stewardship We are a nonprofit organization serving at-risk youth here all over Sonoma County From the front door of my organization. It is 20 steps to the proposed dispensary Every morning I have youth that come to my door for work vocational counseling and to better themselves and Every evening from every single high school that has a probation youth here in Sonoma County Youth come to my door for programming to improve themselves and to stay out from behind bars The vast majority of the youth that come to my door are individuals who have issues with substance abuse and with impulse control Just imagine standing at my front door and looking over and seeing a substance purveyor right across the street Not only that There have been two letters from the director of human services and the director of probation here in Sonoma County To Adam expressing their concern about my programs and the appropriateness of being Right next to a dispensary That means to me that not only could this be injurious to the youth that I serve But when my RFPs come out to these county agencies those programs may not very well be funded again and that means that in the long term Youth that have a desperate need to pick themselves up to better their their case here in Sonoma County will not have that resource and The courts themselves will also not have the resource of the center to keep these kids from behind bars With their families and give them a chance to improve their lives. Thank you. Thank you Next is RN Z Followed by Andrew Krauss Hello The main thing I want to say is that From what I've witnessed over the last decade With the owners of this proposed dispensary is that they historically leave every place better than they found it They are very conscious of their community's needs and are repeatedly going out of their way doing acts of kindness for their community I understand the community has concerns, but to me it kind of sounds like the majority of the concerns already exist in the residents is day to day life I Feel the proposed dispensary may actually Relieve them of some of those problems because unlike maybe a proposed dive bar in the area I feel like the owners of this company will listen to the neighborhood and try to go out of their way to help them out I don't I don't think I Just confident that this proposed dispensary will continue to build on their track record of helping and improving the communities Thank you. Thank you Next is Andrew Krauss followed by John lawn It's actually Andrew Kramer, but oh Okay Yeah, so I just kind of like to speak to there's they actually the owners of green pen actually own another dispensary There was recently rated as the number one in the entire nation For the operators based on sustainability based on environment based on the way they treat their employees things of that nature So you're not kind of having someone come into the neighborhood. It's going to be a shady operator Would also like to speak to their character because as Alex was saying it's a vertically integrated company And when we had the fires happen, I know Dennis, you know dropped everything within two to three days Offered up a building to the Red Cross free of charge So we had the Red Cross command station operating out of there over by our headquarters in Santa Rosa And you know, I know I know it's the cannabis industry is a little bit new to a lot of people But as Ari said, I've only seen a visit over a hundred dispensaries from Seattle To Compton to Englewood to San Diego all over and I've never seen enough taken crime from it Typically, I mean you have people who are cleaning their parking lots. You have people who are watching the neighborhood It's typically actually kind of a good thing for the community. So just kind of wanted to speak to that So thank you very much. Thank you John lawn followed by Katie Clark Yeah, hi John Lana I'm a homeowner about 950 feet as the crow flies from that location. I live in a historic neighborhood houses to 1901 I believe I also have a business right next door to me and I can totally Understand the frustrations with the people have a parking and I get frustrated sometimes when I don't have a spot in front of my house But at the end of the day, it is a business location there's going to be a business in there regardless or it's just going to be vacant and Any business is going to have to have cars parking there. So unless it unless it was to be torn down I don't see the parking thing as You know that that big of an issue that doesn't have to be dealt with in any neighborhood. So and I also think that having the security guards there and You know having the place cleaned up would you know be a nice touch That buildings looked pretty bad for quite a while. So That's all I have to say great. Thank you very much Next is Katie Clark followed by Joanna Cedar I think that it's important to think about the fact that this building being vacant isn't helping anybody it's not helping what's going on in the neighborhood and It doesn't help the community in general Businesses have come and go from this building a Dispensary will be something that will remain and be solid solid community and solid employment And I think that If you've all been out to the parking lot, you see there's a lot of issues going on now. They'll take care of those issues Thank you. Great. Thank you. Joanna Cedar followed by John Phillips Thank you. My name is Joanna Cedar and I appreciate the opportunity to speak with you today about this proposed dispensary project I'm credentialed to teach social science and health education at the secondary school level and for almost 20 years I taught in the Santa Rosa City School district Most of them at Santa Rosa high school one of the high schools in close proximity to the proposed dispensary I've reviewed all of them the Ancillary materials and letters submitted by the community and listen to many of the comments offered here today And I'd like to directly address the idea that this dispensary poses a problem or Constitutes a negative influence on high school students even those at risk of substance abuse The data do not support these conclusions in my direct experience I can without Equivocation assert that high school students obtain their cannabis from the black market not the regulated dispensary system number two normalizing the process of adults Obtaining cannabis from the regulated market actually decreases teen use of cannabis the more teens learn about and view the legal market The less desirable misuse and abuse of the product becomes to their demographic Opposition to this dispensary seems to be predicated on the erroneous assumption That those who are customers of a cannabis dispensary are somehow undesirable in the neighborhood and pose a risk to youth youth this belief is rooted in 80 years of stigma and prohibition, but it is untrue Anyone who six has successfully parented or taught a teenager knows that attempting to sanitize Their environment with the intention of controlling their behavior does not work due to my unique experience in training and in light of the empirical data Available on similar projects and in similar locations. I ask that you consider my comments with proper weight and measure merit Additionally, I ask that this body deem that which the majority of comment or writers about this Issue have found counterintuitive that the impacts of a well regulated cannabis market on youth are largely positive And I ask you to vote to approve this project. Thank you Thank you John Phillips followed by Ralph Sykes Hello, my name is John Phillips. I live at 228 Benton and I thank the Planning Commission for having comments today Many years ago I lived down in the peninsula was a planning commissioner myself and I've had to review a lot of projects some were very favorable to a community and some were very questionable and sometimes I had to make a Difficult decision and have that will to deny a project Living in this neighborhood and walking this neighborhood every day with my dogs. I Really commiserate with all the neighbors on Glen Street the parking the traffic the parking and traffic especially during school hours Is reason enough in my belief to deny the project? I think that I'm also a winery owner today So I do also understand owning a business and owning a business that sells a substance That can be used inappropriately at times And I've also had to ask people to leave my winery when they are under the influence of different substances So I do get the nature of what's being asked for in terms of what's being proposed to be sold at this location I think that the danger really despite the the previous speaker Having at-risk kids walking the street every day Having walking the neighborhood myself in the morning and seeing kids light up in the mornings before school Having easier access to cannabis is just not a good idea so close to these high schools You know, we have very little we have places where folks can just pull off and and and toke up right before school And very little enforcement and I realize that maybe that's the exception rather than the rule for legitimate cannabis business but it still is a problem in our neighborhood with two high schools and a community college and Also the armory where we we have a lot of at-risk people especially during the winter months using that as their right-of-way to Reach a shelter so I am seeing what could potentially be negative impacts I don't know what will be the mitigation of those impacts once this project is approved and Moves forward I have concerns about that once the genie is out of the bottle And I truly think that the parking alone and the traffic issues alone will create a nuisance For the neighborhood and be a difficult. I think that would be a difficult reason enough to approve the project I just want to thank you again for listening to all of us from the neighborhood I'm also vice-chair of the historic neighborhood, but I'm speaking as myself It's a wonderful neighborhood, and I just don't want to see the disruption especially for those living around Glen Because there will be an increase in traffic and parking problems. Thank you. Thank you Next is Ralph Sykes Hi Some of these points have already been touched, but I'd like to talk about the parking I agree with the previous speaker This to me is not really about the cannabis issue It's really about the fact that quite frankly this is just not a very good site for retail use The current design of the parking lot that was shown in the plan I Believe it's been touched on but it means that any if the parking lots full or has at least four or five vehicles in it Every car will have to back out onto the street in order to exit the parking lot Now, I don't know what the parameters are in the law But that just shouldn't be a way that we allow a parking lot to be used on a street that has a lot of traffic at certain times of day I Would wonder whether all of you visited the site But did any of you visit the site in the morning around 8 o'clock when school is when people are going to school or At 3 or 3 30 in the afternoon when people are leaving school at those times of day It is difficult to even negotiate that street Because of the crosswalk that is located on College Avenue. That is a major avenue for Children to be walking back and forth to school and a gathering spot but again with the parking if people are going to have to back onto that street and that street often because of existing parking can Only accommodate one lane of traffic That just doesn't make sense to me that you would allow that use There are plenty of other retail spaces that are better than that for this use So that is the primary thing I would like to remind you also or let you know if you're not aware I live on Korea Street in the 400 block We live every day with the consequences of a decision made about 40 years ago to allow two Residences to be torn down and re-zoned so they could be turned into a parking lot That is in other words they it was originally residential houses We now have a situation where overflow employee parking is always on Korea Street it's part of what adds to the parking issue in the neighborhood and So I would agree again if there aren't enough parking spaces here I don't think we should think that people are going to be Parking seven minutes away and always walking when it doesn't suit them They're going to be parking in the neighborhood and once you approve this I guarantee you We will not be able to do anything about it right now I've had a car sitting on the street near my house for 30 days And I still haven't gotten anybody from the city to come out and deal with it That's the way this city operates once you allow something nobody wants to do anything about the problems So this is the time to say no it's not the best place to do this Thank you Thank you Next is Nancy Grach followed by I believe it's Julie Mercer Ingram I of course they agree with a lot of the good points that have been brought up about Parking and traffic. I live at the corner of Korea and Glenn and as I look out of my house I can actually see the proposed project in particular one thing that has not been pointed out is how the use of the building is being proposed and that's the orientation of The entrance the building was designed to be used from the front Today I was actually surprised I was not intending to speak They are now intending to use the rear of the building as the primary access That is not how this building was ever designed to be used By permitting the building to be used in this fashion. They are shoving The entire use basically into the neighborhood The the house that lives basically right there will now be front and center to the entire business all day long Five houses four houses will basically be ringside to the business all day long This is extremely disappointing to me if this building were required to use the front entrance as This building was designed perhaps building Customers would park at the front of the building along the curves along the front of the street People would use the parking in the back lot and then go to the front of the building It wouldn't be pushed into the neighborhood The neighborhood wouldn't be subjected to the business so rudely With the architecture as they proposed it This is pretty egregious the way this is designed so not only is the Parking being shoved in the neighborhood the traffic is being shoved into the neighborhood the way they've oriented the entire Architecture it's like here. We are and we are in your face I don't want the building to be vacant, but The way they've oriented the whole thing is like here we are and You're not getting rid of us and I don't necessarily want them to go away, but can you Man, you know, can you turn yourselves around and and face college? That would be nice. Thank you Julie Mercer Ingram followed by Isabella Tarazas Good evening. My name is Julie Mercer Ingram. I am a resident of Sonoma County and a business owner here in Santa Rosa I run a business called kind law and I'm an attorney here in the city my office is not too far from the proposed location and I've represent part of the business owners of this Proposed business and I've worked with them for several years. I've known them to be very Compliant and fair and honest business people and I look forward to you welcoming in this business I'd like to change the thinking around this location I hear a lot about parking and this and that but we have to look at our community in a different way We are no longer rural or suburban. We are becoming a more urban community Especially with all the top commerce and tech people that have moved up here because of the low cost of living and let's face it a beautiful community and I'd say that being on Transit in a corridor that is very easy to access for a bunch of different parts of the city is actually a benefit to Santa Rosa Being a thousand less than a thousand feet from a bus stop being near to freeway access and many other highways and parts of the city will help consumers find safe access to medicine and Cannabis products within the legal market with ease and with security Speaking of security the city and the state have pretty strict rules when it comes to cannabis retail facilities surveillance guards age restrictions all of these things are highly regulated and will ensure that there is no diversion especially to children furthermore packaging must be opaque and Unrecognizable secure from children at least until 2020 and all materials inside of that secure afterwards From children. So I'd say it's going to be discreet. There's no on-site Consumption proposed at this location So in terms of the security and in and out of people it will actually be a net benefit to a vacant spot that has been left Frankly abandoned for years now and let's face it that color. Wow. I don't know My husband's a public health advocate. So I have to chime in about the safety of you know liquor versus marijuana Cannabis has been shown to be less of a public health issue Than alcohol and I would just have you google map this location and see that there is a bar across the street So any argument about the security of our children's health is a bit just in genuine when it comes to having liquor very close proximity I will also say having being a cannabis attorney I have attended almost all of the meetings here in santa rosa both the subcommittee city council and a few planning commission hearings And I will tell you that I love working here because the mentality is let's treat cannabis operators like any other businesses So in this case, I urge you to uphold the staff Recommendation and approve this project because it is a net benefit. Thank you. Thank you Isabella Hi, my name is Isabella trazas and I'm a member of the national honor society at santa rosa high school Until I came to this meeting. I had no intention of speaking to like five minutes ago when I wrote this so um That aside, I'd like to say that I support the inflammation that's just this dispensary This is not because I would utilize it in any way. I'm not old enough nor do I have a desire to But I believe it would provide an opportunity to grow as a society, especially regarding our youth I would like to point out once again that the location is not within an illegal distance to any school in the area Also, I believe it was pointed out that it the proposed hours would be at 9 a.m Which is after the usual traffic hours caused by santa rosa high school at least. I don't know the times of the other schools Um As previously mentioned, this is a historical district and when california legalized marijuana they changed history in a way I've noticed that a concern has been made that this location is in close Proximity to many schools and I say that this is a chance to better educate our youth I do not mean to say the children should be using the substance But the amount of education provided on the topic is inadequate and I was and I would go as far to say misleading I think that this is a perfect opportunity to show our youth that there is a proper way to handle marijuana And erase the stigma that anyone who uses this substance is bad or or is a bad or immoral human being This is a historical neighborhood and as a community we cannot continue to refuse history's natural change Thank you Thank you Thank you That was the last card that I have if there's anyone else wishing to speak you don't have to have filled out a card and Come on up. Just if if you wouldn't mind stating your name for the record for us and we can collect your card later I didn't really want to speak either But my name is gail goodbred and I live around the corner I'm going to get nervous. I live around the corner from this location and I'm not anti pot I've used medical marijuana. I don't mind driving down santa rosa avenue, but this location is terrible I mean, I can't even get out of my street. I live on curio If I want to go to cotton town at three o'clock I have to drive the opposite direction to get out of my house to go around the block And then get caught in that traffic because it's crammed where we live Um That back alleyway is a nightmare I call all the I mean at least twice I've called for homeless people back there gunshots Knife stabbings. I'm not saying that you're gonna bring in that. I'm not I think you've got a great store take it out of a neighborhood though or at least one that has Parking I can't even park in front of my house Hardly ever and I have to walk in the dark to get to my house on curio because it's already over congested with parking I know we've said all this but I just couldn't I couldn't not say anything because my landlord will kill me I mean he should be here and he would definitely say something um God I don't know what else I can say the speeding the delivery I mean we've got joey's pizza delivery guy. He speeds down curio I mean people speed the more cars that they come the more speeding the more little kitty cats that are out there Because people don't keep them in their house. They're gonna get hit by a car. I mean, it's just too many cars It's too many cars. It's too congested That's it. And you know again, I'm having I'm not against pop. I smoke pop You know occasionally Medical or otherwise great. Thank you miss good rid Any other members of the public wishing to speak before I close the public hearing? Okay, I'm not seeing anyone else rise. So I'm going to go ahead and close the public hearing And allow the applicant To respond to some of the concerns Or all of the concerns that have been addressed To him Yes, and I'll do my best to work through the concerns, but uh, please commissioners if I miss anything Prompt me to respond Again, I want to emphasize that you know, we're committed to ongoing communication with the neighborhood and We'll be making my as I said beginning my phone phone number available from now until opening and then once open The manager's direct line will be available to them for any ongoing concerns Many of the things that we've heard today Are what we heard at the neighborhood meeting they involve existing conditions and I have to say the pieces delivery thing also came up It's one of the reasons that that we took care in our operational plan Our delivery vehicles won't go through the neighborhood They'll go immediately to college avenue and then on to their destination unless they're going into the neighborhood Excuse me And I and I want to echo the commenters that I want to reject They're rejecting this premise that somehow a cannabis use is inherently negative There's there's just no factual evidence to support that in fact in almost every case There is a marked improvement in the existing nature and in this case. We're dealing with what is Potentially could should be considered a blighted Building an area that will be improved that will have an active use That will be removing the illegal structures in order to create the striving for the additional restoration of the parking spots and really Bring an active retail use to a retail building in a general commercial location along an arterial roadway And when we look at Traffic, I think we very much need to look at traffic in the context of how we have planned for it in the general plan EV c1 Retail and business services need to be located in areas with among other things heavy pass by traffic That isn't a negative thing in our general plan That is a positive thing in our general plan for where we're putting retail uses This is a location that meets the general plan designation zoning designations and policies as set by the council and by this body and Is very appropriate in addition to that there is a Bicycling community here having personally lived in ridgeway and the jc neighborhood on dentin and benton You know, I know the extent to which there is a cycling element in that area We have multiple bike shops that support that within Easy access to the site as well We have a high walkability score and that's a part of why the applicant has chosen to put 12 covered bike spots in order to serve that specific community in this specific neighborhood I also want to address that while we don't believe and we do reject the premise that there is a negative impact To cannabis use in hearing from the neighbors of the original meeting. We did restrict our operational Age limit to 21 and over for all customers And that is a direct consideration of the neighborhood's comments you heard today and that they proposed Previously at the neighborhood meeting and again the commenters that have said that this isn't a negative use On on youth are right But we wanted to be responsive to that concern As this industry continues to grow in santa rosa I believe that I have in a broad way addressed Most of the comments that were brought up if there are any that I missed specifically Yeah, I'll get to them. Yeah, it's okay. I got a list. I can address the parking right now Well, let me go in order so I don't lose my list. Okay um One of the uh commenters was asking about how you intend to guarantee the employee's use of the of the parking and How you guarantee that they would not park in the neighborhood, which So, I mean it's uh, I mean ultimately it comes down to a condition of employment Our intent in part in using parking garage one because it was within a walkable distance Uh, it was that it was a good place to find parking But also because it's a verifiable condition by the city We either did or did not purchase those parking passes and when employees are coming to work They will be required to use those or if they're going by alternative means of transportation either using our pre-tax benefits for public transit Or our bicycle parking facilities. Um, obviously they won't need to use the the parking hopefully reducing single occupancy vehicle trips Okay, and then um Can you speak to How the parking maneuvers will work there are concerns that people would have to be backing onto the busy street Can you kind of describe that and I think I'm going to have staff add some stuff to that eventually Yeah, I mean it is a challenging site. Um, it's an existing building that we're proposing no modifications to other than the removal of the illegal Structures with that said we did have a plan drawn up showing how the six spots can be restored and they have been previously in use The the parking circulation Does not require every single one of those spots to bark back back up onto it there's an ability for them to to turn around but You know, ultimately it was feasible from the study that was done by our Folks who drew up the plan as well as in looking at it from an overall operational standpoint I I am not personally the one who drew the plans, but when we spoke about it and we had the professional Draw that striping plan. It was seen as feasible for it to work Okay and So I think it wait public hearing is over. We're going to get the questions answered through Staff and the applicant here And I think that's generally all we're probably going to have questions for you too in a minute So don't go away And some of the ones that I think staff might Speak to here are There were concerns about how the the parking Standards or my little thing go here Oh, I know one more for you nick. Um, could you talk about the orientation of the entrance? Yeah, there's an existing the existing front entrance Has a stoop and so it doesn't reach it doesn't meet current standards for access It would require significant modifications to the building It is a building that's over 50 years old which contributes to the historic nature of the neighborhood and it was just not a feasible Upgrade to the facility the rear entrance has actually been used by previous uses as the primary entrance because that's where the parking lot is and you know, we've Taking into consideration a number of the things we've heard from the neighborhood around the concerns with those previous uses for mostly around loading and delivery Trucks because it was a hydroponic store Previously and that's why you see the conditions around hours of operation for those But as far as the configuration goes, it's a very restrictive site because of the historic nature Of the property. Okay. And then uh, lastly from you if you could just describe generally your security Outreach beyond the the site so that the neighbors I know they're concerned about the alleyways in As always we we don't like to be too detailed in our security procedures because security procedures ones public are no longer security procedures But in consideration of the neighbor's comments, we've committed to having our on-site security guard not just manage the Property for making sure that no one is loitering or consuming on-site but to also patrol and walk down the alleyway and then reporting any Collicit or inappropriate behavior to city police department We've used this and you see this currently in work on other dispensaries that are open in the city of santa rosa and those facilities You know as was referenced at the last council subcommittee Have seen no remarkable criminal activity with them and for the most part that type of a process of having that patrol that goes a little further into Into the surrounding neighborhood has been a value add to the neighborhoods that currently have dispensaries Okay And then staff if you wouldn't mind commenting on some of the the concerns about how the parking lot design standards Landscape standards how that was handled yeah, um, so the design standards that were discussed by The public included those that would be applied to a major redevelopment of a site or a new construction project So those weren't implemented here because this is looked at as a retenanting of an existing site Because no major modifications were proposed Right In addition just as it relates to the circulation on-site With the parking the project was referred to the relevant city departments the fire department the building department the engineering department And those departments felt that this was a satisfactory circulation plan Okay, great and then um Generally again, you know, I know we did at the beginning of the staff report but if you wouldn't mind going back through particularly the The history of the 600 foot setback from schools and sort of they The reasoning behind that how we got to that policy I'll take that question um so the city As a local jurisdiction we have and had the right to assert Our own unique setbacks to sensitive receptors and so as part of the policymaking process which spanned At least a couple of years of discussion with setbacks to sensitive receptors being a primary discussion point all the way through that process um and various variations to that and looks at other jurisdictions what they were doing and also um sort of the impacts of Different options were discussed but ultimately the city council did enact The local ordinance to be 600 feet from a k to 12 school So not just any school not a youth center not daycare center But really academically oriented schools and that's consistent with state law that it's 600 feet from a school okay and then um Just generally because the There are a lot of issues that the neighbors are bringing up that exist whether this building is vacant or not in terms of the parking The speeding through the neighborhoods Is that what are their what what are their avenues of Looking into that with the city or obtaining some kind of consideration or relief from the city so but We're we're we're discussing that right where I'm letting him discuss that so So as the chair indicated the site is zone general commercial. So retail uses are permitted um So these the same parking ratio would apply to any retail use that goes there So as far as the neighborhood is concerned right now, there is no restriction on the parking All of the parking is available to the public throughout the neighborhood. So as a neighborhood That group could petition the city for a restricted parking Condition that does not exist currently And we've seen other neighborhoods do that. Correct. Yeah, okay um And then could you highlight just one more time this building is Kind of a a unique animal in terms of its its situation with the legal non-conforming status and Could you just say more about that? What uses every use would be would be having this same discussion in terms of parking So the parking is uh, it's a non-conforming situation because it was Seized the operation ceased for greater than six months. It needs to be made conforming So the mechanism is through a parking reduction because it's not a wholesale redevelopment We are working with an existing condition. And so the appropriate mechanism is through a parking reduction a conditional use permit Which requires the additional findings that mr. Ross indicated That would be true as we've indicated with any retentant team that goes into this site that has a parking ratio Similar to this which would be any retail use for an example Okay, great. Thanks um commissioners, um Why don't we start with the applicant? Are there any questions? Yeah, yeah, I sure weeks I have a couple of questions for you. Um first one is um What are the do you have an idea what the ratio between full and part-time employees will be? I don't have a specific knowledge of full and part-time But at no point in time to anticipate more than six employees in the facility Which is why we picked that number for the number of parking passes for the parking garage whether they're full or part-time And would you look at? What kind of salary range are you talking about for the employees? I don't have that information specific to this project, but in general the cannabis industry provides Living wage exceeding $18 an hour for entry-level positions And then also Leaving your presentation you talked about that the parking in the lot would be 15 minutes We had originally looked at a delivery Plan that would have one of the on-site Spots being 15 minutes in order to make sure that there was a spot turning over regularly for the delivery vehicle Because of today's confirmation of the 24-minute parking loading zone on the streets available for that use We May still do that on the site, but it won't be to accommodate the delivery vehicle since the delivery vehicle won't need to use on-site parking Again, though, there's no on-site consumption. This isn't a facility where people come and stay so we may still look at that somewhere to how a starbucks or a Another type of facility puts that type of limit to make sure that there's turnover and parking for their customers And that my assumption would be that that if you did do that limit it would be enforced by your The security correct. Yes. Unlike starbucks. We have someone there to someone there to enforce it um With the delivery I couldn't tell On the site plan where you would be receiving deliveries So deliveries and this is a part of the hours for deliveries being staggered with with other types of deliveries The deliveries will be using the same entrance as the customers and will be staggered to Occur in such a way that they don't come when the facility is open That's why the hours of operation for distribution deliveries are six to ten While we conditioned Other types of deliveries such as ups fedex and those types of vehicles to not start until eight because of feedback from the neighborhood And then obviously there are hours open hours of operation when begin until nine Which I would also point out one of the peak traffic hours in the city Is completely unimpacted by this proposal because we don't open until nine nine a.m And One more question. I know that the whole idea of delivery to customers is new But do you have any information as to you know the percentage of customers that get home delivery? From other I mean Santa Rosa doesn't have it yet really so but from other jurisdictions Yeah on on a on a national and state level i'm aware of Statistics from previous years citing 54 percent of transactions being done By delivery. I can't verify those results myself, but that's what I've read in publications I would say that we do have one dispensary in Santa Rosa that has delivery services of our three And while we're not at a point of statistical Validity in the in the research around this type of traffic. It does appear that there is A reduction in traffic trips to dispensaries with delivery services And that's because when a customer comes in and they figure out what they want They can then sign up for recurring deliveries and they don't have to make the trip to the facility Great that's all my questions right now. Thank you. You have questions Kishore Krepke Yes, so, um, I have a couple of questions and I'm sure you can guess what they all revolve around Is your traffic engineer here, uh, yes, we have Cameron knife from W. Transfer Okay, so I'm probably going to get into some questions that did more his purview than yours So, um To confirm you say a condition of employment is using those parking passes Right if your employees are if the applicants employees are found to not be using them parking it on lincoln or choreo or benton They'll be terminated as with any standards of operation for working there. It that is the eventual Outcome I wouldn't say that's where we'd start obviously corrective action Education, you know, we don't want people to just lose their jobs. Um, but yes continued Actions that conflict with the company's policies that that is an outcome that could that they could face Okay And you said no more than six employees per shift Correct So does the traffic study take into account all those six spots being used at the same time at the garage? Yeah, so in the traffic study, um It's stated in there and it's been stated throughout the night that 12 spaces are needed to satisfy city requirements Six spaces will be provided on site and then another six in the city garage And then I think it's also important to note that there are four street parking spaces Available directly adjacent to the site on glenn and on college avenue. So Any use that comes in here? Commercial or retail is going to be in the same parking situation But with the operational parameters that are being proposed in terms of bike parking 12 covered spaces connected pedestrian network access to transit And then 12 total parking spaces plus another four on the street. So up to 16 total parking spaces is You know probably about as good as you can do in a situation like this Okay, and your traffic report said that the pm peak hours are the the trips would probably double correct? Um Yes, yep, that's correct. Um, so less than 50 new peak hour trips and then per city policy Anything generating less than 50 trips is considered a less and significant impact and then no further analysis is required And no traffic impact study would be needed. So if the employees are using the six spots in the garage, there's the We'll call them five Or the ADA spot plus the two parking spots on the street for those 40 trips Yeah, so I think what you're saying is that there would be some um Some trips actually wouldn't even make it to the site as they would be employee trips going to the parking garage. Is that correct? Yeah, but I'm also the same time. That's a lot of trips I mean if you if you're saying there's 12 spots for all these peak hour trips Well, half of those don't count because they're employees that are parking off site. And so now you have a smaller Smaller that would be correct. We didn't specifically quantify that this would be a conservative estimate of the number of peak hour trips okay, and then um I noticed in the staff report there was You know walkability great biking great Less than five percent of people bike to work or or to do things in this community I've earned that through the bike and ped master plan a couple weeks ago My question is the walkability from the other side of college and the bus stop that You guys have mentioned is on the uh, is on the other side of college Does the traffic study take into account the usage of that crosswalk and the ripple effects it would have on College on traffic or the traffic on college? No, so in the traffic study We just looked at trip generation and parking in in terms of numbers So no, we did not specifically look at where those trips would be going in terms of trip distribution All right, and then Did the traffic study take into account the delivery aspect were those were those trips counted? No, so these the rates that we use our standard rates developed by the institute transportation engineers And then also and then for that was for the pmpk hour and the daily trips and then for the ampk hour it was um We developed our own rates here at three existing dispensaries in the city of santa rosa And so we use those rates for the ampk hour as dispensaries in the city don't open until nine o'clock a.m But we did not specifically quantify for Delivery trips reducing any of the trip generation. So again, this would be a conservative estimate Although I can say from the data that we collected in the ampk hour One of the rates or one of the locations that we collected did have a lower rate than the others And it did have a delivery service. So while that's only one data point It is indicative of generating less trips But we can't say for certain until we have more more dispensaries online and we're able to collect more data Okay, thank you. That's all my questions Mr. Kari, you have any questions for the applicant? Yeah, and my questions Are going to Tag on to commissioner will curb case. They're largely traffic related. So you might want to stay up there Um Let's go to the loading zone space. That's a 24 minute street space, correct on glenn Correct Does it require any special permit to use? Do you have means to reserve that space by anyway? I've received this information most recently from the planner on the project And I think it'd be better for him to address that because he had the direct conversation with the traffic department Yeah, I spoke with City traffic engineering about that issue and and was wondering and Asked that same question and I was told that the only way for it to be removed is as as if they request for it to be removed but otherwise it's Permanent until that point in time and it can be used by the whoever whatever tenant is at this location But it's reserved for the subject site and it's not available for public use Yes, I'm I'm sorry. It's okay There's not a specific restriction to the subject site now Okay, and my next question has to do with the the trip rates I think I also observed that the pm peak is 40 something trips and with 6 to 12 available spaces That would be Maybe a turnover of every 6 to 8 minutes If there were really 44 trips coming to use those 12 spots is am I doing my arithmetic right here? I'm going to let Cameron answer the specific nature of that question, but I think one thing to note here is city code Is what called for this in the City traffic department asked us Asked us to put together a memo if we exceed 50 trips Then we get into a specific traffic Analysis where a lot of these questions get answered if we're under them then the city code requires It says that it's a less than significant impact and that those things don't need to be analyzed So when we were scoping this analysis for For w chance to look at We we you relied on the city's policies And so the conservative estimate that Cameron is referencing means that you're seeing what a Worst-case scenario could be we've put in place many provisions to ensure that that worst-case scenario doesn't it doesn't occur And I'll let Cameron address any Yeah, I just want to add in there that we're talking about 44 trips But you have to remember that That half of that would be in and half of that would be out So then you're looking at 22 vehicles in that one hour I don't know if that helps with your calculations that does. Thank you. Okay I have a minor design question on the the building itself Your project description made a point of saying there would be an art display along the college avenue facade to screen the retail operation in part I noticed there's a window on the Glen avenue side is there similar screening going on or will the retail activity be visible from the glenn avenue? It would not be visible from from glenn and I appreciate you bringing that up That is actually a point that I wanted to make when I referenced our walkability score For this site because that's a feature that we believe will also help increase the walkability of this street And you know without making any exterior modifications for a building that's already on The sidewalk and on the street without without having to bring a lot in front of it Which is another one of our goals to create a more walkable city I we believe that that art feature will add to the desirability of those locations and all windows will be screened with it Although will be screened in such a way that the retail activities are not viewable from the exterior of the building Thank you, and i'm going to back up for one last parking question Part of the materials suggested that If the spaces weren't available in city parking structure seven you would Look elsewhere. Have you been able to confirm that spaces will be available in the parking structure and in my apologies We uh the city garage one on seventh street. Um, yeah one of those One of those slip-ups on our park, so We addressed that specific Unlikely events You know just to say that There are those parking spots are currently available in that parking garage We've inquired about and we intend on immediately securing them. We have to actually have the license plate numbers that connect to the So vehicles i'll be parking there before we can apply for them. We attempted to get parking passes already that would That would not need those license plates So in the unlikely event that there's no more passes available there We would essentially go to the next available parking spot or find an alternative and communicate with the city about what that was Again, we picked this In part because of its walkability and convenience location But also in part because of it's of the ability for the city to be able to confirm Whether or not we have these spots and for there to be that ongoing conversation if for some reason There weren't spots available in that parking garage But yes as of today we have confirmed that we could get six spots If we had the license plate numbers of everyone who'd be using them The public hearing is over. So we're we're working on I'm we're working on you can you can talk to staff afterwards But we're not we don't take questions shout it out. So Okay, thanks Any other questions commissioner car? any other questions Oh the applicant Okay. Um, yeah, I just have one again for the on the traffic study You you you did your calculations based on the entire square footage and then you made a comment that Um, if you're just looking at the the retail space That square footage we'd only be deficient by one space Could you could you just say what are you what are you intending to say there? Uh, so what I think you're talking about is in our original, um, analysis We calculated the trip generation and parking based on the retail square footage only in the facility Because parking for employees will be provided off-site therefore they wouldn't want to be in the demand onsite and and then As we as discussions went on the city staff We realized that we wanted to apply it to the entire square footage of the facility Which again is you know conservative in nature, which is usually how we go about this And then that's the um results of the addendum analysis that we prepared. Okay. Okay. Just was a little confused there Okay, um So I think that's it for you all right now and I think we have questions of staff Chair sisco. Yes So sir, I just wanted to provide clarification for the commission and the audience is that the Loading space on the public street is Available for the business but not specifically dedicated to the business For the exclusive use for the business Great. Thanks for that Um, by stir least did you have a question of staff? I have a question for staff actually a couple of them. Um, adam Can you tell me if uh, the police department had any comments when this was referred on to them? Yes, uh, this was referred to the police department, but no comments were given by the police department and then my Uh, second question is uh, mr. Casual mentioned some letters from probation and human services Uh that were sent in and I If I they came to us. I miss them. They're in there. They are I didn't see the one from probation. I saw the one from human services. So maybe I'm thinking So, uh Everything that I have received to the best of my knowledge. Um, I have included in the public correspondence as well as anything additional Provided after the attachment Um to you you've you've received two hard copies of public comments that were submitted even later this afternoon Um, so I'd have to clarify that I received that. Um, if I Did receive it. It should be in your hands. I can't tell you if I specifically did or not Okay, thank you. Oh look through it again commissioner krepke Yeah, just a couple quick questions. Um, I don't know if staff or maybe even the applicant This is more of a fire marshal question. What's the capacity of the building? Do you guys have any clue? No, we don't have that information. Okay. All right. Um, and then, um Where was I? Um, my other question was So should we approve the uh, the c up and the parking reduction? Um With the caveats, they will purchase the uh garage passes Say a year down the line after approval. They're up and running They stop By the garage passes. Is there any repercussions? Is there anything we can do? so That is referenced in the project description Excuse me. So it's part of what would be approved with this use permit It's also specified in a condition of approval. So condition 13 Requires it. So if there was any non compliance with that, it could be a code enforcement action Let me double check make sure I don't have any more questions. Um Yeah, uh aside from the only other one I have is is I don't have the letter probation I just from probation. I just looked through everything Yeah, commissioner carter any questions to staff? Yes, um following up on the Non-compliance with conditions question My understanding from the question that you answered previously adam was that Um non-compliance is usually enforced on a complaint basis. There's no ongoing reporting or monitoring For compliance. Is that correct? Uh from the city standpoint, um, that is correct code enforcement would be the enforcement body after the approval The site is subject to annual fire inspections I believe and Yes so, um If a neighbor observed Parking that wasn't consistent with the parking operations proposed they could Complain to the city and have a possible code enforcement action Yes, so how this works This is a land use and so what they're seeking is a land use permit And that use permit comes with conditions including and also representation of the operation so if any of the if the use or Its operations as described to you tonight and as conditioned are not complied with it's a code enforcement issue and that does so for example if the Condition number 13 speaks to having parking passes for employees then they Any that use this use if approved must comply with that for the for the life of the for the life of the use Um, there are issues. Um, we've heard through the public hearing for parking in the neighborhood in general and we've responded to there's, uh Things that the neighborhood can consider in the future if they want to do a permit parking program and restrict it to residents But if there one thing I want to make clear on the parking in the neighborhood if it's public parking street parking It's available for the community. It's available to all so Just to be clear that parking is not restricting customers And they're making every effort to make Every space that they do have available inside available for customers Just a quick Question the property immediately east of the subject property. What's what's the zoning on that? I think we had a map sometime earlier, but It's signed as a business. I believe It's a cg as well. Okay. Thank you. And uh Finally within the resolution Item c It says that the proposed medical adult use cannabis retail dispensary and delivery with on-site consumption Is allowed. Uh, is that straight from the the zoning code or Should that is that concern the on-site consumption should be stricken from the resolution? All right. Thank you Sure. Go ahead. Commissioner Kroepke. Sorry. I finally found my last question. So in a theoretical world The city is making a concerted effort to develop downtown And one of the things they're putting on the table is purchasing of city property including garages, correct? So if garage one is bought to be developed What happens? Well through that process As well as ongoing efforts to look at all of the general plan and zoning Issues related to downtown parking will be a primary concern. So to ensure and in addition There will be a general plan update citywide that's going to occur over starting soon and go for the next couple years Parking will be a primary focus So the idea is that parking will be provided and sufficient for all of the general plan designations for the downtown area Correct. It'll be accounted for Okay, any other questions of staff? Ms. Hartman, you're going to say something Yeah, there was a couple things I think we haven't addressed that came up in the public hearing that I took note of though I think we had a lot of different questions that came up and we've been working through those But there's a couple that I think are important and I mean this is the public hearing for the use permit and I know there was mention of Appeal process and there is an appeal process, but this is where we should answer all the questions that have come up And one of them is just the the way this process works I think some clarification on the part of the public is necessary There was a neighborhood meeting. We do require that for any conditional use permit that is In the vicinity of residences, so we did conduct that and it was well intended and there were A number of the issues that you've heard tonight But as we've gone through the last You know 30 40 minutes answering them They are expressly answered Raised and answered in the staff report parking traffic proximity use schools and so The way this process works is is that the application can continue to go on through this due process But we do have a responsibility to address those issues and that's what we have been doing Throughout the staff report the analysis and this public hearing The the other thing I wanted to note was the one of the findings was reference I think is the first finding compliance with zoning code and Specifically it was a reference to how can it be in compliance because they don't meet current parking standards But the code anticipates that we this is a evolving community and some things get Constructed like this and become out of data to current parking standards. And so it has various mechanisms for parking reductions particularly to In support of retenant in older buildings. So To make This retail site work or frankly retail whether it's cannabis retail or standard retail Or office they all have the same parking current parking standards one space per 250 square feet So the only way to put 12 spaces on there is to remove the building And so of course the code and the general plan do not anticipate that So there is a way to comply with the zoning code and that is how they're doing it You need a use permit and an operational program that can be conditioned and tracked and enforced and that's that package That programmatic package is what Makes it compliant with the zoning code but I think That's needed to be clarified as well And then just to reiterate the way the process works is these use these use permits are site specific Use specific and all these conditions are specific to the to this particular permit So they must comply with each and every one of those conditions. And yes, we are complaint based But we are also we have a Adequate staffing and code enforcement and if there's a complaint we're going to be right on it We're going to check with the owner. We have very high success with communicating with owners and tenants to Remedy any issues should they occur? That's always the first step And then there's a series of progressions all the way through to if this use really becomes a nuisance Um, then there's processes even for that But there's a lot of protections I think for the city's in a use permit process that we don't have when things are permitted by right and actually this one Is by use permit for cannabis retail, but general retail would be by right So there's this this particular permit has extra protections All right. Thank you Any other questions of staff? Any other questions commissioner carter? Okay So with that let's bring it back to the commission and is someone willing to Read the resolution noting the strikeout Of the language on number c about on-site consumption for discussion um, I will Move a resolution of the planning commission of the city of san aroza Approving a conditional use permit for green pan llc a medical and adult use retail cannabis dispensary with delivery in a 2943 square foot building and approving reduced on-site parking at three five three college avenue apn 180-75 Oh dash o four six file number c up 18 dash o eight o with a change in Section c on the first page to eliminate On-site consumption Is that Yeah, and wait for the reading And wait for the reading sorry right and do I have a second? Okay, so that was moved by vice chair weeks seconded by commissioner carter Vice chair weeks you want to begin our discussion? sure I want to just start off by saying that there were many public meetings during the time that the city Was developing the comprehensive cannabis ordinance And got a lot of public input and it was very thoughtfully done And our role is to implement the policies and planning and zoning of the city of san aroza and um That's our role. That's our scope and I am able to make all the findings And i'm glad to see a facility such as this in that quadrant and east of 101 So I will be supporting the project commissioner kripke So when I was appointed to this position So I was excited for housing and cannabis and Everything that goes with it and then someone said that's great, but it's all going to come down to parking and traffic um and Here we are so None of my concerns are rooted in the cannabis industry or the clientele at all It's mostly rooted in the fact that um This is an imperfect spot and set up for a business any business whether it's a It's an ice cream parlor or a shoe store or a cannabis dispensary We have allowed parking reductions before and I know that's a separate thing but that was for on-street parking not offset over a thousand feet away And I bring that up because I have two major concerns and then In the traffic study questions. There was too many's we didn't take that into account or I don't know um Because it wasn't required and it's because of that that I can't make finding e which is the uh the nuisance the or detrimental to the public and If I had to vote today, I wouldn't support the motion, but I don't want to do that because I don't have enough information to make a decision um I'd have to take the the word of You know someone in public comment because I haven't seen the letter and I'd have to take Uh a traffic study that has in my opinion too many holes in it. Um I agree that something needs to happen. I agree that there are a lot of Um protections within this process Because it's not by right. It's it's Something different But I can't make all of the required findings because I just don't have enough information So, um, I guess my comment would be if I'm forced to vote today. I'm gonna I'd have to I'd have to Vote in the negative But I'd prefer to continue this to another time so I can get that information so that I can And can you be specific about what information you would be looking for? I'd like to see the letter from probation to see if there is an actual possible detriment to an adjacent business as well as traffic study that takes into account delivery and Ripple effect of the college app crossing with visit with people coming Back and forth across it from walking or businesses or the bus or the parking For the employees or the bus Okay And commissioner carter Yeah, I think um Where I am on the project. It's very similar to where uh commissioner crypt is um And pardon me if I'm not Proceeding yes, we should because I did second the the motion, but I I do have a problem with the with the parking I think um It's a situation that exists because of the nature of the neighborhood and because any and wouldn't exist with any Uh commercial use but I think um Um What we have here is something that could exacerbate it without Uh additional analysis to look more closely at the how the maneuvers around the facility might impact uh traffic even if it's not at a sequit type level. I think operationally it's it's It got some problems So you would want to see um a more developed traffic study with certain specifics to it In order to go forward. Yes. Okay Okay, um, I'll say what I think and then we'll work out where we go from here What I see here is It's a unique situation. It's a it's a it's a historic district This is a building that's part of a historic district that makes it difficult um to Bring up to our standards. It's legal non conforming I think no matter what business goes in here. There is going to be a very similar exercise as we've heard um I think this particular applicant has gone to great lengths to to deal with The parking reduction to make sure that it's It's handled with its employees I think So much so many times up here We are talking about complaining that there's too much parking and so, you know, we're in a walkable area an area that was served by transit The the parking garage which would serve the employees possibly even serve some of the Individuals utilizing The retail service Is a thousand feet away it is walkable Uh You know these things are accounted for and in the general plan And we account in the zoning code for these kinds of very tricky situations You know our choice would be if we wanted to have it brought up to standards is raise the building Nobody would want to do that in a historic district so I hear that you want more certainty as to how how it all circulates, but but my opinion is that We will get that certainty and I just think at this point this applicant is offering a lot that building needs to be retentated I I don't know when you all visited the site. I visited the site anticipating that I would Park in the lot and get out and walk around and check out the alleyways It was at noon on a weekday And it would there were there was so much Negative activity on that site that it was too intimidating for me to do that and that needs to change and absolutely would change with This particular applicant better than an ice cream store or any other kind of retail outlet because of the advanced security Where they're offering It's 24 hours security. It's on site patrols They're be looking at the alleyways a lot of the problems that that trouble this neighborhood would be dealt with with this use so To me that would be if i'm living in this neighborhood that would be of great value to me And and the parking issue exists with that without this use And I think it I think it it can be addressed and is being addressed by this applicant We're getting A painted building It's going to it's going to look much nicer in your neighborhood. It's going to be much safer in your neighborhood I think about the complaints and fears of people walking by a cannabis retail use And if i'm a parent in that neighborhood, i'm worried about people walking by the use the non-use that exists right now with Very negative Issues happening on that property that they're walking by right now every day so for me it's This is A proposal that has come along that can really Activate the street protect the neighborhood Successfully Offer something to the neighborhood It's it's a retail outlet in the keeping of things that we we are always looking for for the to have an even dispersal across The city that it is walkable transit oriented all those things and so to me the parking and the maneuvering of the parking have been well worked out and So For me it's it's it's a concern that we we just can't go forward Again if i'm living in that neighborhood, I would want this to move along quickly and I Mr. Sykes and I also want to say something to you. I want to say something to you I'm no i'm not gonna i was gonna say something about your car situation And that is I frequently I live in a neighborhood very similar where I have cars all over parked I'm regularly on the phone to have those tagged and moved I don't know why there's been a backup lately, but i've had to call more than once to get them moved So the your 30-day thing is is definitely in keeping with my experience But don't give up keep calling because they will come move them So I appreciate your concerns So all right, okay All right Okay, so with that That's where I would stand But we would end up with a 2 2 and so I think We'd be in better keeping to go ahead and continue Staff wants to say something just for clarification I spoke to mr. Coussoul from in the audience He indicated that it's his understanding that the letter from the probation department was sent to staff late this afternoon approximately 330 staff did not access the email in time. And so That's why it was not forwarded to the planning commission What sounds like commissioner crepeke wants more than just to look at the letter he wants Better analysis. Well, yeah, I Yeah, and but I think the thing with the letter is that it's while there is a certain amount of blight with that specific place If it does negatively impact an adjacent business Even if it's a nonprofit it's still a business We can't in good conscience trade one business for another especially one that's existing and how are you what are the Points of how would it negatively impact it if the letter does state that they would it would have a negative impact on The rfp process for them to get their contracts to continue on as an organization that and it does and it is detrimental to them I find that to me that is Detrimental to the public interest And how how do we then apply what our policies are because that I mean that's that that's the point in the 600 steps Effect from schools and how those things were accounted for If we Any business could come forward and say i'm negatively impacted. So I guess i'm not clear on how you're but it's not the business It's it's one of it's the person they have a contract with saying I will not give you a contract if that is next to you So it's not them saying we're in trouble or in trouble It's the person who supplied who who gives them a contract that and it's also a government institution I'd find it hard to believe a government institution would lie about something like this Okay, um and again, I want to ask staff. I know we had this issue come up about housing You know having cannabis uses next to certain housing and we're financing was it issued do you have any Anything you could say about that? uh, well, I'm sure um, mr. Crocker can add to it, but to date in these The issues that have risen um have been a couple in terms of impacts to other entities So in terms of housing and the ability to access affordable housing funds, it turned out that that was suggested, but not true um Another issue emerged through the last couple years and that was um Federal funding to schools it was suggested that cannabis approving cannabis within proximity schools would impact federal funding That was also suggested but found to be untrue So these are things that can be explored, but it's difficult in a land use permit environment to as you go through the research But suggestions doesn't necessarily mean that the impact is true. That's that's characterized And that is correct. We did research that issue particularly in regard to federal funding for housing projects And for schools and found that that was not a valid argument And there was nothing to support the notion that federal funds would be at risk for either of those uses And you do a similar research process by virtue of this letter I would look into it. I have not seen the letter and came in late I can't speak to what it says. That's what mr. O'Crabby is looking for Okay, and at the same time it may even give the applicant a chance to to have a discussion with probation and Health and human services to say hey, here's what we're doing and then the the issue is resolved completely. Okay So it looks like we would be looking for a Continuance to collect more information from the applicant any suggestions from the applicant about How quickly they think they could do that in return? The applicant just indicated he would accept a Continuance to a data uncertain to a data uncertain. Correct. Okay Okay, so So I think just yeah, go ahead One might be helpful is just to make sure there's a clear communication between the commission and the applicant The applicants traffic engineers have fully understand what additional information or clarifications this study should include Okay, commissioner kripke. You want to outline that for the the applicant? So yeah, my concerns were Delivery was not the delivery trips were not taken into account during the study As well as sorry, I didn't take down all the notes as well as Hold on Oh Any ripple effects for the use of the crosswalk if you're walking from from the south side of college or using the bus on that side Or anything like that if that backs up traffic and then causes an issue with the traffic on college Those are my main concerns. Okay Anything additions there commissioner carter Yeah, I I think jeff probably covered it But but I too would like to better understand how movement around to accommodate Parkers at the facility affects both the congestion on Glen and college and pedestrian movement through that critical intersection You guys good You're clear on what we're what we'd be looking for any questions about The clarifications about what they're looking for We just want to confirm that the research that we would be taking on is around the parking and sidewalk concerns And not around the federal funding issues that have been brought up That's really outside of our scope of ability And I believe the city attorney's office has done a good job in researching those questions in the past Yeah, I think that research will fall to our city attorney to to respond to that letter. So Yes, I'll look into that. Okay Okay, so, um, we had a resolution on the floor we Resin that and make the new motion. Is that correct commissioner crocker? You you can just do a motion to continue and that will stop the debate So, okay to a date uncertain with your direction. Okay, would someone like to make that motion? I um, we'll make a motion to Continue this to a date uncertain. Is there anything else need that need to be Do I rescind my previous motion? No, she said that but with direction then so a motion to continue to a date uncertain with direction to staff to prepare the traffic analysis and response to the probation letter As directed by your commission What she said thank you Okay, and do we have a second? second I don't know what is with those seconds Okay, um, so the motion to continue to a date uncertain with those requests of staff to Look at the traffic analysis And to respond to the probation letter Was moved by vice chair weeks seconded by commissioner. Oh crap key and your votes, please And that passes with four eyes commissioners dug in kalia and pierson being absent And that concludes our business tonight And I appreciate the frustration and um We just can't allow shout outs from the from the audience. It just isn't what we do here So appreciate everybody's cooperation with that