PREVIOUSLY:

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Earlier in the week, we told you about how the Humboldt County Community Development Services Department and its planning staff were wigging out a little bit over the rising tide of weed-related work flooding into the office since the passage of the county’s commercial cannabis ordinance.

Well, today — resolution! Apparently that emergency meeting Wednesday resulted in an agreement to reorganize the planning division and to create a new “Cannabis Services Division,” which will specialize in all marijuana matters.

Interim planning director Rob Wall told the Outpost that the idea has been kicking around for a while. “It was something we were discussing earlier on, but we were in kind of a wait-and-see mode with this industry,” he said. “We just didn’t know what was going to come through the door.”

Now that they know that there’s a whole lot coming through the door — and now that they can offload some general plan update environmental documentation  to consultants — now appears to be the time. Wall was confident that the move will result in better service for the public, and in a mellower work atmosphere for the planning division at large. 

Letter from Wall to the Board of Supervisors:

There has been much discussion recently regarding cannabis projects and the impact they are having on the department. In consultation with the Board, we are taking the following action to better manage the situation.

New Cannabis Services Division

Starting July 1, 2016, a new Cannabis Services Division will respond to customer inquiries, conduct application assistance meetings, and process cannabis permit applications. On a temporary basis, employees will be reassigned from the Advance Planning Division to back fill staff needs while new employees are hired and trained. This temporary redeployment is possible because we are hiring a consultant to work on a portion of the Environmental Impact Report for the General Plan.

Cannabis Permit Applications and Assistance Meetings

The department will continue to accept cannabis permit applications. Customers requesting application assistance meetings will be given the next available appointment.

Next Steps

During the month of June, the following tasks will be completed prior to the launch of the new Cannabis Services Division:

  • The Development Assistance Manager will survey state agencies and local consultants and develop an estimate of how many additional cannabis projects the Department might expect this calendar year.
  • The Chief Building Official will implement a method for tracking cannabis related projects in the Building Inspection Division
  • The Supervising Planner for the Current Planning Division will determine appropriate workload levels for individual planners to ensure effectiveness and develop a method for transitioning cannabis projects from the Current Planning Division to the new Cannabis Services Division.
  • The Business Manager will research and provide recommendations regarding options to augment staff including but not limited to the hiring of extra help and the use of qualified consultants.

Significant challenges lie ahead. Nevertheless, the Department remains committed to ensuring applicants’ eligibility for state licensure in 2018 as this is critical to the success of our program and the future of the local cannabis economy.