San Diego Medical Marijuana

When the state of California implemented a medical marijuana program, San Diego took some time to regulate dispensaries to operate legally. Now in San Diego at least 54 dispensaries are operating illegally due to lack of regulation. Earlier in 2014 the San Diego City Council made the decision to allow a legal path for dispensaries that have been operating illegally, anyways. Unfortunately, this process is complicated, expensive and highly restrictive. Fortunately, Cafe Cartel is located in San Diego so I was able to speak with a medical marijuana permit case manager and figure out the process. Yesterday, I went down to the San Diego City council offices and learned more about the process of applying for a medical marijuana dispensary permit in San Diego. I think it’s also worth noting that it was also bring your kid to work day. On one side of the offices there were carnival games and fun events for families, and on the other side a line of people that had been in line for hours, some had waited in line all night, looking to apply for dispensary permits. It was definitely an eclectic mix of people. I don’t think they had planned for that.

Anyways, one of the first things I noticed was that some of the terms that San Diego uses are not uniform across the medical marijuana industry. So I’ll go ahead and define them.

Glossary:

Medical Marijuana Consumer Cooperative (MMCC): The term for dispensaries in San Diego

Conditional Use Permit: This is the type of permit dispensaries or MMCC’s can apply for.

• A conditional use permit just states that the governing body i.e the city of San Diego may impose reasonable conditions to protect the public health, safety, and welfare. This will allow the City of San Diego more power to impose restrictive zoning regulations and applicable use regulations.
• You should also know that a conditional use permit is attached to the MMCC location along with the permittee.

San Diego Medical Marijuana Consumer Cooperative Restrictions:

San Diego’s MMCC zoning requirements are among the most restrictive. This is important to note for MMCC owners when looking for a location. Location is one of the most difficult factors for MMCC’s to find and if in violation your application could be rejected immediately.

• The total number of MMCCs is limited to four per City council District. Except for District 3 which includes Downtown San Diego, Hillcrest and North Park.
• MMCCs are not allowed within 1000 feet of the following:
  • public park
  • church
  • child care center
  • playground
  • city library
  • minor-oriented facility
  • other Medical Marijuana Consumer Cooperative
  • residential care facilities
  • or schools.
• MMCCs are not allowed within 1000 feet of a residential zone.

Medical Marijuana Consumer Cooperative Submittal Process:

The evaluation process of getting your conditional use permit in San Diego is broken up into 3 parts

Step 1: Initial Screening
During the initial screening, you’ll submit all the required documents. All forms must be filled out completely and accurately. All documents can be found on the sandiego.gov website. Once you have all your forms submitted for approval you’ll be able to submit your Conditional Use application to the San Diego City Offices. You can do this through appointment by calling (619) 466-5300 or through a walk-in service at the City council offices.

Once you get the okay from your case manager that your application meets the minimum requirements your application will be assigned a project number and given a creation date.

Step 2: Submitted Completeness Review

This second step is where the City of San Diego Development Services reviews your application. This process can take up to 30 calendar days to complete.

Step 3: Full Submittal

When your application package is ready for full submittal the staff will provide the necessary documents including your Public Notice Package request. This package is documentation that the public knows about your intent to open an MMCC in the area.
After this point a project manager will be assigned to your project and it will be re-submitted for review.

Once the project application has been determined by staff to meet all city, State and Federal rules, codes, policies and procedures, the project will be scheduled for a public hearing with the Hearing Officer. Once four projects per each council district have obtained final approval from the City’s decision-maker, all other applicants that pursuant to the Municipal Code,no more applications can be approved.

Deposit Fees
Initial Deposit: $8000
General Plan Maintenance Fee: $275.00
Mapping Fee: $10
Close Out Fee: $500