Zoning administrator conditionally approves food-processing permit for 145 Jordan Street in San Rafael

SAN RAFAEL, Calif. — The acting zoning administrator on Aug. 20 conditionally approved a conditional use permit for food processing at 145 Jordan Street, allowing storage, milling and fulfillment of products such as flour, bread and sourdough starter at a site near a residential zoning district.

Associate Planner and acting zoning administrator Renee Nikkenig said the permit is approved "subject to a five-working-day appeal period" and emphasized that the operation must comply with City of San Rafael noise limits and required dust-control measures. She also noted staff found no apparent safety hazards from the proposed light food-processing use and that required findings for the permit had been met.

Project planner Mikayla O'Brien told the hearing the proposal would employ one full-time and four part-time contract workers and operate intermittently during hours listed in the application — 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., up to seven days a week — with products to be sold at farmers markets and distributed via delivery services. O'Brien said the planning manager categorized the business under "food processing services" for land-use purposes and that the site's proximity to major public transit influenced parking requirements.

An applicant representative clarified the organization is a nonprofit. Nikkenig said staff would note that clarification in the record and explained that, because the site is adjacent to a residential zoning district (attributed during the hearing to a school across the street), the use permit was required to highlight and manage potential sound impacts.

Nikkenig gave specific instructions on appeals and post-approval steps: anyone wishing to appeal must submit a letter and the applicable fee to City Hall by 5 p.m. on the fifth working day after the decision (the administrator said the appeal period would end next Wednesday at 5 p.m.). She stated the appeal fee as $358 for a San Rafael resident or neighbor and $5,119 for the applicant or a nonresident. If no appeal is filed, the permit becomes effective and the applicant may proceed with business-license and building-permit plan-review processes.

At the end of the hearing an applicant representative asked how long it takes to receive a business license; Nikkenig said processing time "depends on the process" and paused the meeting to address questions outside the immediate effective-date discussion before adjourning.

Next steps: the five-working-day appeal window noted by the zoning administrator is the next formal deadline; if no appeal is filed by the stated deadline and fee delivery requirements are met, the applicant may continue with licensing and building-permit applications.