The Application Packet references filling out forms online and then an email confirmation will be issued and that email is to be included as proof. But, when following the link, there is no portal for the Background Check documents to be submitted. Should these forms be emailed to the city?
The Cannabis Owner Background Check Form for each owner is no longer required to be filled out online or submitted by email to the City prior to the application due date of April 7, 2022. The Cannabis Owner Background Check Form for each owner is the only document that is required to be submitted with the application. As such, email confirmation will no longer be provided and is not required to be submitted in your application package.
How and when should payment for each of the owners be processed?
Payment for Owner background checks ($350) for each owner should be made at the time of submitting the application
The Application Packet mentions that the results of the Background Check are to be included with the application submittal, when is the cut off date in order to get the Background Checks in order to get the results in time?
The Cannabis Owner Background Proof of Preliminary Background Check payment, Email confirmation, and the Results of the background check are no longer required to be submitted in the application package. The Cannabis Owner Background Check Form for each owner is the only document that is required to be submitted with the application.
Confirming that the Background Check documents need to be submitted before the application is due?
Background check documents do not need to be submitted before the application is due.
Confirming that the Live Scans are not required until after being selected by the city?
LiveScan for Owners are only needed once an applicant has been selected
In the Application Submittal Checklist it says, “A signed and notarized Property Consent form, or Lease Agreement, or a “Letter of Intention” to Lease.” But in the Zoning Verification Letter section, it says, “In the event the proposed location will be leased from the property owner, the applicant shall be required to provide a signed and notarized statement from the owner of the property, acknowledging that the property owner consents to the operation of the commercial cannabis business on the owner’s property as outlined in MCMC section 9.60.150.” Do we provide the Property Consent form regardless in addition to the Lease Agreement?
If a property is going to be leased for commercial cannabis use the applicant must provide a notarized statement from the property owner per NCMC 9.60.150.
Will applicants have grace period after Phase I in order to fix a minor omission such as a missing signature before having their application denied?
Applicants will not be allowed to make amendments to their application or to supplement their application, except as otherwise specifically permitted in these procedures, or posted on the City’s website as a clarification update, or as authorized in writing by the City Manager or his/her designee. During Phase I, City staff and the Consultant will conduct a preliminary evaluation of the applications for completeness and will reject any application that is missing a major component (for example, a Security Plan), notifying the applicant by email that they have been disqualified.
For those Applications which are missing essential information, the primary contact will be notified by email if their application is found to be missing minor requirements (for example, signatures/dates on forms, proof of payment receipts, scanned pages in one of the scoring criteria documents, or incorrect formatting or organization of files). If this is the case, the Applicant may be granted five days from the date of the email to submit the required supplemental information. Should you receive an email from the City we ask that you confirm receipt of it immediately. If the City does not get confirmation from your primary contact within two days, it may, but is not required to, make an attempt to notify the primary contact by phone in case the email went into the recipient’s spam folder unnoticed. However, please note should this be the case you will not be provided additional time to complete the curing process, so make sure you monitor your incoming or spam email carefully. Furthermore, you may not submit any additional information other than what was requested to cure the minor requirements. Finally, an applicant will be notified if their application is incomplete or if there is any other reason for which they will not be moving forward in the application process.
In Section B, Item 8 “Describe to the extent to which the cannabis business will be a locally owned enterprise and the owner(s) reside within the City of National City. In order to qualify for this criteria, an owner must have lived in the City of National City for at least three (3) years prior to November 9, 2021.” And Section E, Item 4 “Local Industry Knowledge – Describe your involvement in owning a business in National City. Business ownership must have occurred for at least 1yr prior to November 9, 2021.” Are these the sections for extra points that are referred to in the Local Owner Applicants section on page 6 of the Application Package (“To establish local owner preference, Local Owner applicants will receive an additional 5% (150 points) added to their application score.”)?
Applicants who meet the criteria in Section B, Item 8 of the application are eligible to receive an additional 5% (150 Points) on their application score, as referenced in Appendix B of the Application Procedure and Guidelines.
Applicants who meet the requirements of Section E, Item 4 would ONLY receive the points allocated for that specific question and are not eligible to receive the additional 5% (150 points) for local owner applicants on its own. They must also meet the requirements as outlined in Appendix B of the Application Procedure and Guidelines.
To confirm, the information asked for in Section F, Item 5 is more about the surrounding area of the location whereas the information asked in Section H is more about the location itself?
Correct
Would Employee Stock Option Programs( ESOP) which are usually a separate, non-voting class of stock, and awarded after a year of employment be exempt from the dilution clause?
The ESOP business model would violate the terms of the Local Ownership Agreement. According to the Agreement, the Local Owner must hold and maintain at least 51% ownership and is prohibited from divesting or relinquishing any part of their ownership.
per the Local Ownership Requirement Form requirements ..
- In addition, the Local Ownership Share is also expanded to address voting rights on fundamental decisions relating to the business and control of at least the equity share percent of the voting rights on all decisions involving the operation of the business.
- Applicants will be required to verify under Section 9.60.110and Appendix B of the Application Procedures and Guidelines that they meet the definition of a Local Owner at the time of applying for a permit or permit renewal
One of our founders is the majority - 51% - owner and a National City resident. We are planning on offering 10-15% of the company for employee ownership in the form of “stock options” in an ESOP plan. If we proceed with that, our founder with the 51% will eventually be diluted to under 51% in a few years’ time with vesting schedules. While that preference is for the awarding of the initial license, will offering employees ownership in the company in the near future violate that 51% majority preference, and if so, would it put our license in jeopardy? As at least 50% of employees will be residents of National City, is there a carve out for ESOPs in the future (or can there be) for employee ownership percentages?
Local owner(s) must maintain 51% ownership. Even if 100% of the 10-15% they are offering through their ESOP plan went to employees that are National City Residents, this would violate the agreement due to the following: “This majority interest can be made up of a single individual that meets this criteria, or any combination of individuals that hold at least 10% interest individually
Per the Local Ownership Requirements “..This requirement is also subject to being audited to assess compliance and the Local Owner Preference can initiate legal action due to a breach of contract agreement, and the City may suspend and/or revoke a license if any provision in an operating agreement violates any of the Equity Share or Local Owner Preference requirements”
Section Business Plan 2.1 asks for... "a description of day to day operations for the type of license you are applying for". As we are applying for a microbusiness we have specific details for all four of our type of operations. Our business has a Standard Operating Procedures Manual (written for CCR §5500 exactly in the format the state requires for applying for a state-issued microbusiness license). National City - outside of shortening operating hours from 6a-10p (state) to 9a-9p (city) doesn’t appear to have material additional regulations. My question has to do with our Standard Operating Procedures or “SOPS” which are thorough covering all aspects of our planned microbusiness (manufacturing/distribution/storefront retail/Delivery Retail) and a full 110 pages. Can we cross reference the SOPS - which will be included in the business plan - instead of restating information in both the business plan and the SOPS? Meaning, for example, our business plan gives an "overview" of our security procedures and personnel, but full detail of our security procedures, policies and protocols for each division of the business is in Section 5 of our SOPS”. Will that be acceptable to the reviewer and will not cause our score to be lower by cross referencing that detail?
The City is ok with the applicant cross referencing SOPS which will be included in the Business Plan section of the application for applicants applying for a Microbusiness or applications with more than one type of commercial cannabis operation on a property.
This form in the application is in the first person “I” - we will be changing it to our business names as it is a “we”. IS that OK by the city? We are changing the pronouns and entity specified as signing as owners.
Yes that is ok.
The Financial Responsibility form has the property owner signing as well which puts them as part of the business (it puts the property owner consenting to paying for the application fee and everything else, as the signature does not specify it is for access to the property).
The property owner is forbidden by city ordinance to be part of the enterprise, but your form shows them as part of the business if they are also guaranteeing payments, indemnification etc. Is the intent to have the property owner consent to inspections? As far as I can see, that is the only part of this financial consent form that applies to the property owners.
Section 9.60.120 prohibits the property owner from being paid rent as a percentage of the businesses gross receipts, but that is not equivalent to a prohibition on the business owner being part of the business. The Code also defines “responsible person” to include property owners, and Section 9.60.470 explicitly provides that “All responsible persons pursuant to this chapter shall be responsible for all violations of the laws of the state of California or of the regulations and/or the ordinances of the city of National City, whether committed by the property owner, permittee or any employee or agent of the property owner or permittee, which violations occur in or about the premises of the commercial cannabis business whether or not said violations occur within the permit holder's presence.” The language in Section 9.60.470 is consistent with what the financial responsibility agreement requires.
1) Nothing in the Municipal Code prohibits a property owner from being an applicant, and
2) The requirements in the financial responsibility agreement are consistent with the requirements of Section 9.60.470.
Can anyone be a applicant or does the applicant have to own a cannabis business already?
Yes, anyone can be an applicant.
Can I apply retail/cultivation and retail/distribution since it’s 2 applications per address and retail can only be up to 40% of the total space or I could not use retail twice since it’s 1 use per applicant name?
If I’m applying using a local owner does that take up 1 out of the 2 available applications allowed per address?
Applicants are allowed to submit cannabis permit applications for multiple types of cannabis permits. However, applicants possessing an ownership interest of ten percent (10%), or more, in a cannabis permit application shall be limited to submitting only one application for the same type of cannabis permit. In order to ensure compliance with the ownership interest concerns, every owner on the application will be required to complete the Ownership Acknowledgement form which is provided on the City’s website. In addition, the City will only accept a maximum of two Property Owner Consent Forms per property (APN).
Can a local owner have any past felony or criminal history?
Sections 9.60.110 and Section 9.60.120 of the National City Municipal Code describe persons prohibited from holding a commercial cannabis license in the City of National City.
Is there a minimum parking requirement?
Yes, please reach out to our Planning Department for inquiries on parking requirements.
What is the process if I wanted to move a cannabis license to a different property address after winning?
As describe in Section 9.60.430 of the NCMC “Any time the dispensing, cultivation, manufacturing, transportation and distribution location specified in the regulatory permit is changed, the applicant shall re-file a permit application with the City Manager or their designee(s) containing the updated information. The process and the fees for this re-registration shall be the same as the process and fees set forth for registration in Sections 9.60.420(c) and 9.60.160.
Within fifteen (15) calendar days of any other change in the information provided in the permit application form or any change in status of compliance with the provisions of this Chapter, including any change in the commercial cannabis business ownership or management members, the applicant shall file an updated permit application form with the City Manager or their designee(s) for review along with a application amendment fee, as set forth in Sections 9.60.420(c) and 9.60.160). “
Would there a be a issue on building on top of a vacant parcel that may have a contamination issue?
As outlines in Section 9.60.060 of the NCMC “a mandatory building inspection and all required permits and approvals which would otherwise be required for any business of the same size and intensity operating in that zone. This includes but is not limited to obtaining any required building permit(s), the National City Fire Department approvals, Health Department approvals and other zoning and land use permit(s) and approvals.”
If an applicant is applying for a consumption lounge permit, do they only need to submit one complete application, or do they need to submit two full applications, i.e. one for a retail permit and one for a consumption lounge permit? If it’s the former, does the applicant only need to include section 2.2 (a description of day to day operations for the consumption lounge permit), or must the application include both sections 2.1 (a description of day to day operations for the retail permit) and 2.2?
An applicant would only need to submit one application and include responses to both sections 2.1 and 2.2.
What criteria do you need to be able to be approved for a license local national city resident here. As far as income and funds.
- Finances* – A budget for construction, operations, maintenance, compensation of employees, equipment, property lease, security equipment and staff, City fees, state fees, utility costs, product purchases and other anticipated contingency costs. The budget must demonstrate sufficient capital in place to pay startup costs and at least three months of operating costs, as well as a description of the sources and uses of funds.
- Proof of capitalization, in the form of documentation of cash or other liquid assets on hand, Letters of Credit or other equivalent assets which can be verified by the City on a verifiable letter head.
- A pro forma for at least three years of operations.
- A schedule for beginning operation, including a narrative outlining any proposed construction and improvements and a timeline for completion
Can an applicant apply for a cannabis license on more than one location?
Applicants are allowed to submit cannabis permit applications for multiple types of cannabis permits. However, applicants possessing an ownership interest of ten percent (10%), or more, in a cannabis permit application shall be limited to submitting only one application for the same type of cannabis permit. In order to ensure compliance with the ownership interest concerns, every owner on the application will be required to complete the Ownership Acknowledgement form which is provided on the City’s website. In addition, the City will only accept a maximum of two Property Owner Consent Forms per property (APN).
Does an applicant need to apply for the retail ancillary use at the same time in the application process as the primary cannabis license type? If so, does this preclude you from submitting two applications on different locations for separate cannabis license types, each with an ancillary retail license attached?
Yes, applying for the retail ancillary use must be done at the same time as the primary cannabis license type. Since retail ancillary is a license type, this would preclude an applicant from submitting more than one application for retail ancillary.
I was wondering if the consumption license has any size restrictions for the consumption/ f&b portion? I have read the regs and understand that retail may only take 40% of the space in the industrial zones. However, I do not see any of the same restrictions in place for retail/consumption.
Consumption Lounges do not need to follow the same size restrictions as the retail ancillary requirements.
Being a pass/fail basis, how much information should an applicant provide in each question?
Please provide as much information as possible. Information provided by the applicant in Phase II of the application process will be used in the negotiation of a Development Agreement in Phase III. The City also reserves the right to request and obtain additional information from any Applicant submitting an application in order to conduct a complete review of the application.
Could an applicant qualify for a Microbusiness permit by only conducting two activities such as Retail and Distribution?
The city defers to the states definition of a Microbusiness. In order to qualify for a Microbusiness License, the state requires a license to engage in at least three other cannabis licensed activities and then would be issued (1) license to conduct those activities. If an applicant wishes to conduct only two activities that would not qualify them as a Microbusiness.
If only conducting two cannabis activities (Retail and Distribution) excludes an Applicant from a Microbusiness permit and the Applicant does not want to add a third activity, does the Applicant need to submit two separate applications to the City (one for Retail and one for Distribution), or can the Applicant submit one application for both the Retail and Distribution as long as the application includes content that accounts for both the Retail and Distribution prompts in the Evaluation Criteria?
In your example of a Retail and Distribution operation the applicant can submit one application but would be issued two separate licenses if awarded. Any applicant wishing to conduct cannabis retail sales either storefront or non-storefront will be required to conduct at a minimum one other cannabis activity in conjunction with the retail license such as cultivation, manufacturing, or distribution or as part of a microbusiness. In addition, the retail portion of the operations cannot be the primary function of the business and will be limited to utilizing no more than 40% of the total square feet of any cannabis operation conducted on the property. Please note the retail application must be under the same ownership as one of the other cannabis licenses on the same property in order to qualify for a cannabis retail permit.
If the retail is only accessory to a primary use, is it problematic if the retail division makes more revenue than the other primary use?
The definition of Retail ancillary/accessory use" shall be determined when less than forty percent of a business's gross floor area is devoted to the use, display, and/or sales of cannabis products and/or paraphernalia and no approved retail ancillary/accessory use shall be permitted without a licensed and operational primary use.
If applying for a retail use along with the primary use, is the application page limit 200 per use (400 total) or 200 pages combined total to cover both retail use and the other primary use?
Yes the page limit would still be 200. The City is ok with the applicant cross referencing SOPS which will be included in the Business Plan section of the application for applicants applying for a Microbusiness or applications with more than one type of commercial cannabis operation on a property.
Does the landlord need to sign the Financial Responsibility and Indemnification Agreement form if they are not a financial partner, merely a landlord.
The Code defines “responsible person” to include property owners, and Section 9.60.470 explicitly provides that “All responsible persons pursuant to this chapter shall be responsible for all violations of the laws of the state of California or of the regulations and/or the ordinances of the city of National City, whether committed by the property owner, permittee or any employee or agent of the property owner or permittee, which violations occur in or about the premises of the commercial cannabis business whether or not said violations occur within the permit holder's presence.” The language in Section 9.60.470 is consistent with what the financial responsibility agreement requires.
Thus the form must be signed by the Property Owner.
If on our application submission we have not identified a site and accordingly we could not provide a Zoning Verification Letter would that constitute our application as being incomplete and thus not allowing our application to move forward?
A Zoning Verification Letter is required as part of the application package.
How does the City define an “owner”?
The city will use the states definition of an owner.
Who will be conducting the Phase 2 merit-based evaluation?
SCI consulting will be doing the merit based evaluation
Does insurance count towards the 200 page application limit?
No, documents related to proof of insurance do not count towards the 200 page limit. Only responses to the Evaluation Criteria (Sections A-H of Appendix A) are limited to 200 pages.
I am looking for confirmation that e-signatures can be used for the required application forms?
Yes.
Also, confirmation that copies of any in-person signed forms or notarized documents are also acceptable?
We would need wet signatures for notarized documents
Is the City accepting appointments for cannabis business application submittals?
No but applications can only be submitted Monday-Thursday from 7a,-1pm at our Finance Department.
Does the local owner need to have lived in National City for three consecutive years prior to 11/2021
No, the owner does not need to have lived in National City for three consecutive years prior to 11/2021 to qualify for the Local ownership program.
Ownership Definition
15003(b). If the commercial cannabis business is owned in whole or in part by an entity and the entity includes individuals who manage, direct, or control the operations of the commercial cannabis business, as described in subsection (a)(2)(E), those individuals shall also be disclosed as owners.
Subsection (a)(2)(E) includes chief executive officer, president or their equivalent, or an officer, director, vice president, general manger or their equivalent.
I am confirming that since the City will be using the State’s definition of an owner that any officer or director of any entity that owns any percentage of the applying cannabis business will be considered an owner for purposes of the National City application, including for the owner background check process and Qualification of Owners application section.
Please see the State’s definition of owner below.
§15003. Owners of Commercial Cannabis Businesses.
(a) An applicant for a commercial cannabis license or a licensee shall disclose all owners of the commercial cannabis business. An owner of the commercial cannabis business includes all of the following:
(1) A person with an aggregate ownership interest of 20 percent or more in the commercial cannabis business, unless the interest is solely a security, lien, or encumbrance. For purposes of this section, “aggregate” means the total ownership interest held by a single person through any combination of individually held ownership interests in a commercial cannabis business and ownership interests in an entity that has an ownership interest in the same commercial cannabis business. For example, a person who owns 10 percent of the stock in a commercial cannabis business as an individual shareholder and 100 percent of the stock in an entity that owns 10 percent of the stock in the same commercial cannabis business has a 20 percent aggregate ownership interest in the commercial cannabis business.
(2) An individual who manages, directs, or controls the operations of the commercial cannabis business, including but not limited to:
(A) A member of the board of directors of a nonprofit.
(B) A general partner of a commercial cannabis business that is organized as a partnership.
(C) A non-member manager or managing member of a commercial cannabis business that is organized as a limited liability company.
(D) The trustee(s) and all persons who have control of the trust and/or the commercial cannabis business that is held in trust.
(E) The chief executive officer, president or their equivalent, or an officer, director, vice president, general manger or their equivalent.
(b) If the commercial cannabis business is owned in whole or in part by an entity and the entity includes individuals who manage, direct, or control the operations of the commercial cannabis business, as described in subsection (a)(2)(E), those individuals shall also be disclosed as owners.
If the owner does not reside in California can they provide another drivers license is there any issue with that?
Yes, please provide the correct drivers license information in that section.
If I'm a 10% or more applicant I can apply for Microbusiness on one application and Retail/(manufacturing, distribution or cultivation) on another address using the same name since it is NOT considered the same use and is acceptable correct?
Correct.
I’m applying on multiple applications with different groups and different property address’ as a silent investor. My equity share is 10% on each property address. Is that gonna affect each property application since I’m a 10% owner/investor on each and they’re applying for the same type of cannabis use?
The Application Procedures and Guidelines state that “applicants possessing an ownership interest of ten percent (10%), or more, in a cannabis permit application shall be limited to submitting only one application for the same type of cannabis permit.” If you have a ten percent (10%), or more, ownership interest in two entities submitting cannabis permit applications, those entities may not seek the same type of cannabis permit.
Could an operator be allowed to have servers taking customer orders at the consumption lounge, similar to a restaurant-style operation? Or is it only permissible for consumers to purchase their products from the retail storefront and then bring it themselves to the consumption lounge for use.
The intent is to have the product being purchased come from retail location that is licensed to operate the consumption lounge. Here is the language in question. You will be asked to adopt procedures to ensure this is taking place.
NCMC Section 9.60.265
- A commercial cannabis retail business with a retail lounge on its premises shall adopt procedures ensuring that its customers may only gain access to the lounge once they have purchased a product or products from the retail business.
If an Applicant is submitting a Microbusiness application that includes Distribution, Manufacturing and Retail, and the Applicant owns 100% of that entity. The Applicant is also planning on submitting a separate application for Distribution with Retail as an ancillary use, and is planning on applying under the same entity as the other Microbusiness application of which they own 100%. Is this permitted because Microbusiness is a different type of license than Distribution + Ancillary Retail?
Yes they would be considered different and an applicant with more than 10% interest would be able to apply for both those types of businesses.
If not, could the Applicant submit the Microbusiness application under one entity of which they own 100% and submit the Distribution + Retail application under a different entity of which they own 5%? Or, is this outright prohibited and the second application needs to be submitted using a completely different entity?
If the applicant decides to submit under different entity’s (as long as all the owners and their ownership percentage are disclosed ) they would be able to apply in this scenario because their ownership stake is less than 10%.
A second scenario: an Applicant is submitting an application for Distribution +Retail Ancillary as and owns 100% of that entity. The Applicant is planning on submitting a second application for Distribution with Retail as an ancillary use under a different entity of which they own 5%. Is this permitted, or is the Applicant outright prohibited from applying for a second license type of the same license even if they own less than 10% of the second entity?
The applicant would be permitted to submit both application in this scenario because they do not possesses more than 10% ownership in the 2nd application.
If the resident has lived in NC for approximately 2.5 years, but will be at the 3 year mark when the license is awarded and/or when the TI’s are completed at the proposed location, does that meet the criteria?
No it would not. Per Appendix B of the Application Guidelines and Procedures an owner must have lived in the City of National City for at least three (3) years prior to November 9, 2021; It does not need to have been consecutive.
Multiple consultant requirements - Security plan, fire plan, neighborhood compatibility, odor mitigation can all be completed and designed and laid out by our architect, but getting signed and stamped by the consultants in each respective area leaves us at the mercy of their timing. Is there room there? Can a proposed unsigned plan work?
A signed security, fire, neighborhood compatibility, odor mitigation plans do not need to be included at this point of the application. We are looking for competency and ability to execute such plans when/if necessary. Once an application is selected in accordance with Section 9.60.060 in the NCMC item A(3) "all businesses who are authorized to engage in commercial cannabis in National City obtain the “appropriate approvals and permits which would otherwise be required for any business of the same size and intensity…”
At that point in time full signed and approved plans will be necessary. Proposed unsigned plans are acceptable
The property does not have an existing survey. What is the turn around time to get a site plan from the city? Is there a point of contact? If not, will a measured site plan by our design team suffice?
Your design team can create the site plan. In order to receive the highest amount of points all the questions in Section H: Proposed Location must be answered.
Is any likelihood for an extension on time with the apps?
Extensions are not currently being permitted. Applications in their entirety must be submitted by April 7th at 1pm.
Are Business Formation documents required with the application?
Yes. Please note that Business Formation Documentation will not count towards your 200 pages and can be included as part of your PDF file 4 documents. They may include your articles of incorporation / organization and bylaws / operating agreement.
For Section E, Qualification of Owners, the section on ownership team asks the applicant to describe what owners are doing day to day. Given that “owner” is based on the state definition, would an applicant get more points if an owner who is participating day to day owns 20% or more of the applying business, versus an owner who owns less equity but meets the owner definition for daily participation in the management, control, and direction?
In the scenario you mention above, the points would be the same.
For the proof of capitalization, some investors will NOT have equity, but they will be loaning funds to the business. Do we need to document this with a formal promissory note, or can we have a letter attesting to it, akin to a letter of credit from a person? Would they receive equal points for that documentation?
If you choose to use a letter it must be on a verifiable letter head, in which case you would receive the points available for that section.
Does an owner need to be present in the office to submit? Is it permissible for an employee or an attorney to drop off the application package?
No the owner does not need to be present to drop off. An Employee or an attorney may drop off the application .
What is referred to in the instructions when it requests one (1) printed hard copy of the entire application submittal? Is the application submittal limited to the “application package” on the city’s website or does it refer to the entire application package, including the 200 page guidelines information, proof of capitalization, and other documents in the PDFs.
The entire application package including the 200 pages.
Does the vicinity map and photos of the existing site and building under Section F count towards the 200 page limit?
Yes they will.
If we are engaging in 3 cannabis activities, does the break room shared by employees of all the activities count as retail space for purposes of determining the 40% retail area restriction.
No it would not. The 40% retail area will refer to the gross floor area dedicated to the use, display and or sale of cannabis. In addition the back of the house would not count as part of the 40% gross retail area.
On Page 1 of the Permit Application Form, where it has address information for the proposed location under the property owner, does an applicant list the property owner’s contact address or the address for the proposed location?
The address for the proposed location.
The proof of capitalization we have cross referenced in the business plan to locate the documents and bank statements in PDF #4 per instructions. On the checklist for the application it asks that we include it in Appendix A Business plan (but it won’t count against our 200 page limit).
Can we leave it in PDF #4 and cross reference it in the business plan or shall we include it at the end of the business plan ?
For item Section 1. Proof of capitalization you can reference the documents you have provided in PDF #4.
The other items listed in that section must be included as part of the 200 pages and attached to the rest of the business plan evaluation criteria.
Parking Requirements. Can you please confirm the parking requirements for commercial cannabis businesses?
NMC Chapter 9.60 does not establish parking requirements.
Security Diagram Scale. Section D: Security Plan, Item 2.D indicates that, “The diagram should be accurate, dimensioned and to-scale (minimum scale of 1/4").” We have tested the 1/4" scale requirement and this results in a large (30 x 42) sheet size. The Department of Cannabis Control (formerly Bureau of Cannabis Control) requires only that the premises diagram “must be drawn to scale”. Our proposed security floor plan will fit on an 11 x 17 at 1/16” = 1’-0” and our security site plan (which we are including because our proposed project is in a suite within a larger building) will fit on an 11 x 17 at 1/32” = 1’-0”. Both diagrams are legible in the scales and sheet sizes listed. We propose to use these scales instead of the ¼” = 1’-0” scale listed and the 11 x 17’s can be tri-folded into the 8.5 x 11 application format. Does the City accept these alternative scales for the security diagrams (1/16” = 1’-0” for the security floor plan and 1/32” = 1’-0” for the security site plan)?
Yes, the scale can be reduced if the building is too large to fit ¼” scale. As long as the document is clear, concise, and easily read, the scale is not a concern.
What is the fee for the application?
- $350 per owner for the background check
- $5,624 for the application. This fee includes the cost for phase 1 and 2 of the application.
Do you want these in 2 separate checks or can they be combined in a single check?
One check for the application and a one check for the background check is preferred. The applicant can combine all the payments for the different owners into one check.
