Brace yourselves: Large-scale commercial grows are coming to California’s Emerald Triangle
EUREKA, Calif. This summer, Humboldt County has shown that its commercial medical marijuana market is ready to open to operations large and small if they can play by the rules.
Two commercial medical cannabis farms a quarter-acre mixed-light farm in Carlotta and a 7-acre outdoor farm and processing center in Honeydew were the first to be given the countys stamp of approval this summer, marking the beginning of a new era for the industry.
However, some cannabis advocacy organizations have aired different views on whether the county is taking the right steps.
About 100 more prospective medical marijuana business owners have submitted applications to the county. County Senior Planner Steve Lazar expects hundreds more in the coming months. Lazar described the current batch of applications as being at the first end of big wave that is about to crest.
When that happens, its going to make the last three months look like a cakewalk, he said.
First two Humboldt County grows OKd
Approved in January and having taken effect in late February, Humboldt Countys commercial medical marijuana program sets land use regulations and creates a permitting system for both new and existing commercial cannabis cultivation, processing, and manufacturing operations in the longtime cannabis hotbed known as the Emerald Triangle comprised of Humboldt, Mendocino and Trinity counties.
The countys program complements the Californias Medical Marijuana Regulation and Safety Act, which created a statewide licensing program that is expected to start up in 2018.
In order to operate a cannabis business in California, operators must hold both a local and state license.
A regular attendee at the countys marijuana program meetings was Ferndale resident and local restaurant owner Alex Moore, who co-owns Honeydew Farms LLC with his wife Miranda.
The couple had already had been cultivating just under an acre of medical cannabis on his Honeydew ranch when the countys permitting system went online in February.
Moore now seeks to expand their operations by six more acres of outdoor grows some of which will be leased to other cannabis farmers not connected to their company. They also plan to build processing facilities and eventually open up dispensaries throughout the state to become an all-inclusive company, Moore said.
We decided that it was time to come out as supporters of this industry, he said. Im a businessman and entrepreneur and this is just a business opportunity that were going to take advantage of. I have no moral issues with cannabis. I think the world is a better place because of it.
Moore said Honeydew Farms is also the largest cannabis farm that is set to take participate in the countys cannabis Track and Trace Program starting in August.
Because of the large size of cultivation Moore was seeking, his application had to be reviewed and approved by the countys Planning Commission.
On July 7, Moores application was approved in a 4-1 vote, with several commissioners lauding his work.
Commissioner Ben Shepard was surprised Moores application was the first they would review due to the size and scale of the operation, but was heartened by the fact that state and local agencies supported it.
Its a very complete package, Shepard said at the meeting. I think its a very good way to start what were entering into here in this series of conditional use permits that well be hearing.
Commissioner David Edmonds opposed the application as he thought it went against the countys desire to have an industry made up of smaller farms a sentiment shared by some local growers.
While Moores farm is one of the larger operations to have come forward, it was not the first to get the countys approval.
That title goes to a 10,000-square-foot, mixed-light farm in the Carlotta area owned by Blessed Coast LLCs Adram Darwish. Darwish declined an interview with the Times-Standard.
Unlike Moores operation, the Carlotta farm had to obtain a zoning clearance, which only requires approval from the countys Planning and Building Department director.
Preparation and patience
Regardless of whether a cannabis operation needs to undergo a full-blown public review or just a pen stroke from a planning official, it takes a lot of work just to reach that point.
Though California voters legalized medical marijuana by passing Proposition 215 in 1996, the state failed to regulate the resulting industry until almost 20 years later.
Between August 2015 and January, Californias medical marijuana industry was suddenly confronted with new and often costly water quality regulations and licensing programs at the state and local level.
So the idea that someone was well-positioned and ready to get their stuff in that isnt really true, Lazar said. We expect a lot of people are going to take the maximum amount of time.
Despite the size of Moores proposed cannabis farm in Honeydew, he said he was already well-positioned and familiar with land use regulations following a nearly decade-long process to subdivide his ranch. As a result of this earlier effort, his 14 existing greenhouses and ranch were already permitted and had undergone a full environmental review.
While Moores ranch fit the countys mold for cannabis farming, he still chose to hire an environmental consulting firm to review their cultivation expansion, which ended up costing more than $10,000 on top of everything else.
I think for a lot of people its kind of daunting, but there is definitely quite a few firms, companies, engineers that are very well-versed in this process, Moore said. If people are not knowing what to do, they should just hire someone to do it for them.
While he described the countys decision to open itself up to a commercial cannabis industry as historic, California Growers Association Executive Director Hezekiah Allen said the regulatory process has proven to be quite cumbersome for growers.
Allen said this could result in fewer growers coming into the regulated market.
The scope of this transition requires that local agencies push themselves past the business-as-usual mindset where we take a lot of time and work to get through every permit, Allen said. We need to transition several thousand farms. Were really looking to get this thing streamlined ...
