BASK Ventures, Inc. Indoor Cannabis Cultivation

UP 18-014/BASK Ventures, Inc. (BVI) is a proposal for indoor cannabis cultivation on a 1.16-acre parcel located at 474 Industrial Circle in the Sierra Business Park (APN 037-260-004). The General Plan designation for the proposed project is Specific Plan (SP) and is governed by the Sierra Business Park Specific Plan. Sierra Business Park (SBP) is an industrial park located at the former site of Sierra Materials, a sand and gravel extraction operation that created an excavated bed that is 20-25 feet below the surrounding land. The central objective of SBP is to accommodate needed industrial services in the county while also protecting the scenic resources of the region and the Highway 395 Scenic Corridor.

The proposed small indoor cultivation will occur in a 21,858-square foot indoor facility designed to incorporate 18,067 square feet of warehouse space for cannabis cultivation, 10,000 square feet of which will consist of flowering canopy, and an additional 3,791 square feet for general office use (Attachment 1). Plants will be grown in individual light-sealed, climate-controlled rooms based on the lifecycle of cannabis and will include vegetative, flower, drying, processing/trimming, and storage/vault rooms. At full capacity the facility will operate up to two vegetative rooms, six flower rooms, two drying rooms, one processing/trim room, and storage/vault room. All inputs will be controlled in each room including optimal temperature, humidity, carbon dioxide level, light, water, nutrients, plant protectants, and air flow/exchange.

All applications for commercial cannabis activity must be approved through a Conditional Use Permit (CUP) process. A CUP for retail cannabis must demonstrate adequate plans for site control, setbacks, odor control, signage, visual screening, lighting, parking, and noise, as presented in this report.

The project qualifies for a 15183 CEQA exemption, as it is consistent with the Sierra Business Park Specific Plan and EIR, the Mono County General Plan EIR, and Mammoth Vicinity policies. The project does not have any significant environmental effects, including those peculiar to cannabis operations.