Pubdate: Mon, 25 Apr 2016
Source: Press Democrat, The (Santa Rosa, CA)
Copyright: 2016 The Press Democrat
Contact:  http://www.pressdemocrat.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/348
Author: Kevin McCallum

SANTA ROSA RECEIVES FIRST APPLICATIONS TO GROW COMMERCIAL MARIJUANA

Three groups stepped forward last week to ask Santa Rosa for 
permission to open the city's first commercial medical marijuana 
growing operations.

The requests, and several more expected in coming days, reflect the 
high level of interest the marijuana industry is showing in 
establishing larger-scale cultivation businesses in the city under 
new rules approved by the City Council in February.

Three outfits aligned with the local cannabis industry submitted 
paperwork to the city last week for conditional use permits to grow 
marijuana in industrial sections of the city, the only zoning 
districts where such uses will be permitted under the new rules. The 
city began accepting such applications on April 18.

Planning Director Clare Hartman said she's been getting calls on a 
daily basis from people asking about the new permit program for 
commercial medical marijuana.

Based on conversations she's had with potential applicants, Hartman 
said she expects a total of about 10 groups to apply for such permits 
in the "first rush" of requests.

Plenty of others have inquired, but some seemed put off by the three- 
to-five-month timeframe, permit expense or the transparency of the 
public process, she said.

"It's going to be an open and transparent process, so that is 
discouraging some applicants from moving forward," Hartman said.

That didn't scare off 43-year-old Brian Dombrowski, who plans to grow 
pot under the name Aim High Cultivation.

He showed up at City Hall on the first day possible, paid $13,264 in 
permit fees and is now waiting for his application to be assigned to a planner.

 From there, his application will need the approval of the Planning 
Commission and, if appealed, the City Council. He said he has no 
problem discussing his plans in an open public forum.

"The more people who are doing this the right way and legally, the 
better," he said.

The Chicago native said he's been involved in the medical marijuana 
industry for several years and has helped open dispensaries in the 
area, including the Valley of the Moon Collective, which opened in 
2010 but closed after it was found to be operating without the proper permits.

"I'm really excited about bringing some of my friends and 
acquaintances out of the gray area," Dombrowski said.

He said he doesn't mind people knowing precisely where he's growing 
marijuana. A military veteran with experience in retail security, 
Dombrowski said he'll ensure the building is safe. "I want it more 
secure than a bank," he said.

That will include a cutting-edge camera system that the police may be 
able to remotely monitor in the event of an alarm, he said.

Finding a suitable location wasn't too tough. The 12,110-square-foot 
building on Industrial Drive is owned by his father-in-law, Rick 
Dennett, who runs Dennett Tile and Stone out of the location, 
Dombrowski said. It's located across from Bottle Barn and near the 
new Plow Brewing Co.

If his permit is granted and the tile company moves out, Dombrowski 
reckons he'll be able to grow about 1,300 plants at a time, based on 
power requirements for the high-intensity lights he'll use.

There will be no retail sales at the location, and he'll sell 
directly to dispensaries, he said.

Dombrowski said he's more than 300 feet from a residential area and 
600 feet from a school, as required by the rules.

But he knows that there are youth-related uses in the area, including 
a My Gym. He plans to operate his business discreetly, with access 
away from the street, he said. "My daughter has gone to My Gym. I get 
it," he said.

Another applicant, a Larkspur attorney named Karen Kissler, is the 
owner of a dispensary off Sebastopol Road called Alternatives, A 
Health Collective. Kissler says she plans to do business as Emerald 
Alliance Group.

In her application, Kissler made it clear she intends to run a 
full-service operation. She said was seeking a permit to allow for 
the "planting, growing, harvesting, drying, curing, grading or 
trimming of cannabis ... that is intended to be transported, 
processed, manufactured, distributed, dispersed, delivered or sold" 
in accordance with the state's new medical marijuana laws.

She praised the city for its "enlightened and practical perspective 
on the cannabis industry" and said her application reflects the 
city's goal "of bringing transparency to a formerly underground economy."

Kissler, who said she's been growing cannabis for 33 years, said she 
plans to build a 20,000-square-foot building on a vacant lot at 2875 
Sebastopol Road. The 1-acre property is on the market for $375,000.

She, too, stressed the security measures she plans to employ on her 
windowless building, including interior and exterior cameras, steel 
doors and a rigorous screening process for employees, as well as 
other measures that would "insure only those with the utmost 
integrity may enter the facility."

Kissler did not reply to a call for comment Friday.

The third application was made by Jesse Narvaez. He's a co-owner of 
Deep Roots, a hydroponics supply store with locations in Santa Rosa 
and Sebastopol. He's proposing a 6,000-square foot operation on Coors 
Court, an area of small auto repair businesses off Dowd Drive near 
several of the city's largest car dealerships.

He's calling the operation the Santa Rosa Community Garden 
Collective. He said he plans to upgrade the electrical system in the 
building and divide it into seven separate growing areas.

Narvaez did not return a call for comment Friday.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom