(PLACERVILLE, CA) – El Dorado County today announced the online availability of pre-applications and applications for commercial cannabis use permits and annual operating permits.
“Applicants interested in commercial cannabis operations in El Dorado County can now see the steps required in the application process and fill out a pre-application and application online,” said Deputy Chief Administrator, Creighton Avila, who has lead the administrative efforts surrounding the passage of five cannabis-related ballot measures last November.
Commercial cannabis businesses in the unincorporated parts of El Dorado County are required to obtain a Commercial Cannabis Annual Operating Permit and a Commercial Cannabis Use Permit from the Planning and Building Department.
Pre-applications can be filled out and submitted now; full applications will be taken starting November 18th. For retailers that were issued temporary licenses from the Bureau of Cannabis Control by July 17, 2018, their Use Permit and Annual Operating Permit must be submitted between November 12th -14th.
There are three phases to the application process: the pre-application phase which is used to determine basic eligibility of the proposed commercial operation and identify potential challenges as early in the process as possible. It includes a non-refundable fee of $1,480; phase two includes the submittal of the full application to ensure compliance with the commercial cannabis ordinances and environmental reviews; phase three allows successful applicants to work with the Commercial Cannabis Permitting Office to ensure all conditions of approval and operational requirements of a commercial cannabis business operation are met and approvals are granted. This phase also includes a monitoring program to ensure key milestones are reached by applicants wo are on track to renew their Annual Operating Permit.
“We strongly recommend that interested parties go through the pre-application process first,” said Avila, “as it will identify at a substantially lower cost any potential hurdles than if they were to jump straight into the full application process. Interested parties may even decide not to proceed with the full application after potential issues have been raised.”
The steps of the process, a more detailed description of the three phases can be found here. Applications and other necessary forms can be found here. For more information or questions, interested parties can email staff at cannabisinfo@edcgov.us
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