(a) The City Council shall adopt by resolution a procedure guideline, and review criteria by which the top applicant or applicants in each category of each commercial cannabis business under Section 5-29.08 (a) or (b) will be presented to the City Council for a final determination at a public hearing.
(b) The top final applicants for a Cannabis Retailer may be invited to attend the City Council meeting, where they may be expected to make a public presentation and provide an overview of their proposal.
(c) At least ten (10) days prior to the hearing, notice of the hearing shall be sent to all property owners located within five hundred (500) feet of the proposed business locations proposed of each of the finalists to be considered by the City Council. The five hundred (500) feet shall be measured from the property line of the property the proposed business is located.
(d) The City Council shall either deny or approve the final applicants, and shall select the top applicants in each category of commercial cannabis businesses. The City Council's decision as to the selection of the prevailing candidates shall be final.
(e) Official issuance of the commercial cannabis business permit(s) is conditional upon the prevailing applicant(s) obtaining all required approvals. Following the City Council's selection, the prevailing candidate(s) shall apply to the Community Development Department to obtain any required approvals for the permittee's location, if any. Approvals shall include compliance with all applicable provisions of CEQA. The City Manager or designee(s) shall formally issue the commercial cannabis business permit(s) once the Community Development Director or designee(s) affirms that all required approvals have been obtained.
(f) Issuance of a commercial cannabis business permit does not create a land use entitlement. The commercial cannabis business permit shall be for a term of twelve (12) months and shall expire at the end of the twelve (12) month period unless it is renewed as provided herein. For the purposes of determining the expiration date of the permit, the date shall begin on the first day of business operation under an approval. Furthermore, no permittee may begin operations, notwithstanding the issuance of a permit, unless all of the State and local laws and regulations, including but not limited to the requirements of this Chapter and of the permit, have been complied with. Until a State license is available and obtained by the City permittee, this shall mean compliance with all provisions of the Medical Cannabis Collective Laws as set forth at Section 5-29.06.
(g) Notwithstanding anything in this Chapter to the contrary, the City Council reserves the right to reject any or all applications if it determines it would be in the best interest of the City, taking into account any health, safety and welfare impacts on the community. Applicants shall have no right to a commercial cannabis business permit until a permit is actually issued, and then only for the duration of the permit's term. Each applicant assumes the risk that, at any time prior to the issuance of a permit, the City Council may terminate or delay the program created under this Chapter.
(h) If an application is denied, a new application by that applicant may not be filed for one (1) year from the date of the denial.
(i) Each person granted a commercial cannabis business permit shall be required to pay the permit fee established by resolution of the City Council Resolution, to cover the costs of administering the commercial cannabis business permit program created in this Chapter.
(§ 2, Ord. 1636-NS, eff. December 29, 2017, as amended by § 2, Ord. 1662-NS, eff. July 12, 2019, and § 8, Ord. 1703-NS, eff. August 5, 2022)