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Council approves Medleaf microbusiness permit and waiver for San Luis Rey Road site
Summary
The council approved a conditional-use permit and locational-waiver to add manufacturing and distribution to an existing non-storefront cannabis retailer at 2935 San Luis Rey Road; the applicant will remain closed to the public and hours are limited to 9 p.m. Public comment requested priority for existing local operators for retail licenses.
The Oceanside City Council on Jan. 8 adopted a resolution approving conditional-use permits and a waiver of locational requirements to allow Medleaf to operate a cannabis microbusiness (manufacturing and distribution) at 2935 San Luis Rey Road, expanding an existing non-storefront retail operation.
Planning staff told the council the site is a 17,000-square-foot lot in the limited industrial zone within Oceanside Industrial Park. The business will remain closed to the public, will not expand the existing building, and proposed hours of operation would be limited through 9 p.m. No extraction equipment is proposed at this time; staff said the permit would allow such activity in the future subject to compliance requirements and an annual on-site audit.
Associate Planner Dane Thompson said the project qualified for a Class 1 (existing facilities) categorical exemption under CEQA and that the Planning Commission unanimously recommended approval Oct. 28, 2024. Because the site cannot meet the municipal 1,000-foot separation standard from another cannabis business and from a residential district, the applicant requested a waiver; staff noted both nearby regulated businesses are closed to the public and cited physical barriers and road configuration near Mission Avenue in finding the required locational findings could be met.
Karen Tomlinson, the applicant, told the council the microbusiness license would let Medleaf expand product lines, improve margins by consolidating distribution, and offer more hours to staff; she said the business employs 35 people.
No members of the public testified on the agenda item, but earlier in the meeting Alexandria Cometas, owner of Left Coast LLC, asked the council to direct staff to give current local operators who have been paying city taxes first right of refusal for retail licenses — a request the council did not act on during the meeting. Councilmember Weis asked whether the city is collecting revenue from cannabis operators; staff confirmed taxes are being collected but did not state an exact amount. The council adopted the resolution 5-0.
