Planning Commission — Thursday, October 9, 2025

Consideration for a Major Use Permit (UP 23-03/ PL-25-63) to construct a new 150' tall monopine cell tower designed to look like a pine tree including 12 antennas, one MW antenna, six RRUS, one GPS antenna, two ground-mounted radio cabinets and 50' by 50' lease area to house equipment needed to support the tower. The lease area will be enclosed by a 6' tall chain link fence. The applicant attempted to co-locate the facility but was not able to find an existing tower within this area that would allow co-location. The applicant is proposing some tree removal for widening the access road to the tower.

Staff recommends the Planning Commission take the following actions: A. Adopt Initial Study (IS 23-07/ PL-25-63) for Major Use Permit (UP 23-03/ PL-25-63) with the following findings: 1. Potential impacts to Aesthetics can be mitigated to 'less than significant' levels with the inclusion of mitigation measure AES-1 through AES-3. 2. Potential impacts to Air Quality can be mitigated to less than significant levels with the inclusion of mitigation measures AQ-1 and AQ-2. 3. Potential environmental impacts related to Biological Resources can be mitigated to less than significant with the inclusion of mitigation measure BIO-1 through BIO-3. 4. Potential environmental impacts related to Cultural Resources can be mitigated to less than significant levels by mitigation measures CUL-1 through CUL-3. 5. Potential impacts to geological and soil resources can be mitigated to less than significant levels through mitigation measures GEO-1 and GEO-2. 6. Potential impacts to Hydrology and Water resources can be mitigated to less than significant levels through mitigation measures GEO-1 and GEO-2 7. Potential environmental impacts related to Tribal Cultural Resources can be mitigated to less than significant levels by mitigation measures TCR-1 through TCR-3. 8. Potential environmental impacts related to Wildfire can be mitigated to less than significant levels with the inclusion of mitigation measures WILD-1 and WILD-2. 9. This project is consistent with land uses in the vicinity. 10. This project is consistent with the Lake County General Plan, Shoreline Communities Area Plan and Lake County Zoning Ordinance. B. Approve Major Use Permit (UP 23-03/ PL-25-63) with the following findings: 1. That the establishment, maintenance, or operation of the use applied for will not under the circumstances of the particular case, be detrimental to the health, safety, morals, comfort and general welfare of the persons residing or working in the neighborhood of such proposed use or be detrimental to property and improvements in the neighborhood or the general welfare of the County. 2. That the site for the project is adequate in size, shape, location, and physical characteristics to accommodate the type of use and level of development proposed. 3. That the streets, highways and pedestrian facilities are reasonably adequate to safely accommodate the specific proposed use with mitigation measure added. 4. That there are adequate public or private services, including but not limited to fire protection, water supply, sewage disposal, and police protection to serve the project. 5. That the project is in conformance with the applicable provisions and policies of this Code, the Lake County General Plan, the Shoreline Communities Area Plan and the Lake County Zoning Ordinance. 6. That no violation of Chapters 5, 17, 21, 23 or 26 of the Lake County Code currently exists on the property, unless the purpose of the permit is to correct the violation, or the permit relates to a portion of the property which is sufficiently separate and apart from the portion of the property in violation so as not to be affected by the violation from a public health, safety or general welfare basis. 7. That the project meets all requirements found within Articles 7, 27, 41, 51.4 and 71, and complies with all applicable Plans adopted by Lake County.

Since 2014, regulations concerning cannabis-related businesses have been established. The Board of Supervisors has periodically revised these regulations to reflect updates in state law and to incorporate insights gained from existing procedures. This update reflects a considerable amount of input from the Board of Supervisors, Planning Commission, Cannabis Ordinance Task Force, relevant departments, and the public. Staff recommends amending Article 27, Uses Generally Permitted in light of these contributions, while we concurrently work on establishing thresholds of significance through the CEQA process for issues associated with the revised Cannabis Ordinance, Article 73, which is in the Drafting process with the Planning Division. Direction from the Board on this process has been clear; to streamline the current regulations to support legal cannabis activity, while considering the impacts of the industry on the surrounding environment and improve processes to reveal and address bad actors. The following summary identifies issues for the local regulations governing commercial cannabis-related enterprises that can be corrected by implementation of an amendment to Article 27, Uses Generally Permitted. These actions have no potential for significant effect on the environment, qualifying for the Common Sense exemption in the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) Section 15061(b)(3). The following summary addresses these issues to achieve these directives, as directed by the Board of Supervisors. * Increased setbacks from offsite residences from 200' to 500' * A cap in the size of the commercial cannabis canopy at 20 acres or 871,200 square feet * Incomplete, abandoned applications - establishes process for departmental denial of stagnant applications * Application and Qualifications for Background Clearance for County Permit - sync with state regulations to address challenges noted by the Treasurer-Tax Collector for tax collection * Active warrant review for property owner(s) and applicant(s) - to be established at Completeness Review stage * Method for Calculating Canopy - sync with state method * Setbacks from Industrial Hemp and Commercial Cannabis canopy - for clarity during site visits * Scenic Corridor setbacks * METRC Track and Trace tag destruction after use * Commercial Cannabis Cultivation Exclusion Areas; Clear Lake at 7.79 Rumsey as Public Land * Farmland Protection Zone; Greenhouse construction shall utilize anchor-point foundation when feasible. Concrete slab foundations are discouraged. * Setbacks from watercourses in alignment with the minimum Riparian Setbacks approved by the California State Water Resources Quality Control Board. * Construction hours, Operational hours, and Delivery hours * Opt Out and Reduced Canopy Process due to CDD by June 1 * Opt Out not allowed for consecutive years * Voluntary Termination of Use for an Approved Project * Expiration; two years of inactivity, including two consecutive years of opting out * Removal of 10-year permit limit * $5,000 Restoration Bond; Lake County as obligee The proposed timeline for presentation of a draft ordinance of the above listed items is as follows: * Informational Update to the Board of Supervisors on October 7, 2025 * Informational Update to the Planning Commission on October 9, 2025 * Public Hearing of draft Ordinance at Planning Commission on November 13, 2025 * Public Hearing and possible first reading of draft Ordinance at Board of Supervisors on November 18, 2025 Please note that the following items, which will not be addressed by implementation of an amendment to Article 27, Uses Generally Permitted, will require CEQA analysis for the drafting of Article 73. * Air Quality * Water Use * Prohibited activities: tree removal, odor * Type S: Shared Manufacturing facilities * Type 9 Retail sales, delivery only * Type 10 retail sales with onsite consumption * Temporary Cannabis events * Temporary Cannabis events with onsite consumption * Excessive Concentration of Retail Sales locations Since 2014, the two main topics of complaints and concerns expressed by the public, Planning Commission, and Board of Supervisors has been odor and water impacts of commercial cannabis cultivation. Staff recommends a Programmatic Environmental Impact Report (PEIR) be conducted in order to establish thresholds of impact for these aspects of cannabis cultivation and processing. Included as Attachment A is a recent estimate for a PEIR specific to odor impacts. Staff is requesting Board direction regarding the addition of a PEIR to the development of Article 73.

Lake County experiences a range of climate-related hazards that significantly affect its communities, economy, and natural resources. Wildfires have burned over 70 percent of the county since 2015, while drought conditions periodically stress water supplies from Clear Lake and groundwater sources. Additionally, severe storms cause flooding and landslides, and extreme temperatures, agricultural pests and diseases, and degraded air quality create ongoing challenges for residents. The County of Lake, City of Clearlake, and City of Lakeport are developing a Climate Adaptation Plan to address these issues and build community resilience countywide. Through the Planning for an Equitable Climate-Safe Lake project, funded by the California Adaptation Planning Grant Program (APGP), the plan will build on the Lake County Climate Vulnerability Analysis, which identifies populations, infrastructure, and natural resources most susceptible to climate hazards. Vulnerable populations identified as priorities include people of color and immigrant communities, households in poverty, persons with chronic illnesses and/or disabilities, older adults, and persons experiencing homelessness. These populations face heightened risks from extreme temperatures, wildfire smoke, vector-borne diseases, and barriers to accessing healthcare, emergency services, and community resources during climate hazard events. This Climate Adaptation Plan will use the Pillars of Landscape Resilience framework developed by the Lake County's Office of Climate Resiliency in 2022 to map out adaptation strategies. The framework addresses resilience through ten interconnected pillars: air quality, water security, wetland integrity, biodiversity conservation, forest resilience, carbon sequestration, fire dynamics, fire-adapted communities, economic diversity, and social and cultural well-being. The Climate Adaptation Plan will aim to reduce climate risks for all residents with focused attention on populations with higher vulnerability, strengthen infrastructure systems to maintain essential services during hazard events, and enhance the social and cultural well-being of vulnerable populations and community support systems. CDD Staff are currently holding a series of meetings to gather input from the community to incorporate into the Climate Adaptation Plan. At the Planning Commission meeting, Staff will provide a presentation and offer questions for Planning Commission discussion (examples below). Public input on the questions is also welcomed. Example Discussion Questions 1. What programs, services, or resources does your community provide to help vulnerable populations prepare for, respond to, and recover from climate-related hazards and emergencies? 2. How do climate hazards affect your community's ability to provide services? What challenges do you face in maintaining operations and reaching clients during extreme weather events, wildfires, or other emergencies? 3. What partnerships does your community have with emergency services, public health agencies, government agencies, and other community organizations to coordinate support during climate hazard events? 4. How does your community identify and reach the most vulnerable community members who may be disproportionately affected by climate hazards like extreme heat, wildfire smoke, flooding, or power outages?