Trinity County planning commission splits over cannabis zoning, asks staff for maps and firmer findings

The Trinity County Planning Commission spent a study session and extensive public comment period focused on proposed revisions to county zoning rules for cannabis, including how to treat microbusinesses, distribution and opt‑out overlay zones.

Commissioners and staff concentrated on whether certain cannabis activities should be allowed by right, permitted through a director’s use permit (DUP) or require a conditional use permit (CUP). Drew, a county planning staffer, said the preferred approach is to align thresholds with home‑enterprise rules and to revise the microbusiness definition so accessory activities such as distribution and non‑volatile manufacturing may qualify under a microbusiness pathway rather than be categorically disallowed.

Members of the public were sharply divided. Growers and business advocates urged fewer local barriers and recommended that distribution, processing and non‑storefront retail be permitted in many ag and rural‑residential areas so local businesses can operate without repeated discretionary reviews. “Let’s lower barriers and support small businesses,” Steve of Junction City told the commission. Neighbors and tourism‑reliant residents pushed back, citing smell, traffic and local character: “We moved here for the beauty of the area,” said Barbara Langford of Coffee Creek, urging protection of resorts and campgrounds.

The meeting turned into a wider review of the county’s opt‑out mechanism — the map‑based carveouts adopted during earlier emergency and permanent actions. Staff described a plan to consolidate the various cultivation‑location limitations into a formal opt‑out overlay and to record those opt‑outs as parcel attributes in the county’s parcel viewer. Commissioners asked whether the overlay should use historical 2016 community‑service‑district boundaries or more recent maps; staff agreed to prepare visuals showing boundary changes and parcel‑level impacts.

Several speakers and commissioners said the current opt‑outs lack clear, measurable findings tied to specific land‑use vulnerabilities. Planning‑commissioner Carol McIntosh urged that any permanent opt‑out be grounded in documented land‑use findings. Legal and planning commenters also recommended the county compile the factual record — for example, showing where odors or road/traffic constraints rise to a threshold that justifies exclusion — before finalizing the overlay.

Drew said staff will work with the consultant to correct table errors flagged during the meeting (for example, uses placed in the wrong commercial columns) and return revised cannabis zoning tables at a future meeting. He also said staff would coordinate with county counsel and the environmental consultant to identify what additional EIR or CEQA work, if any, would be required to formalize overlay boundaries or to offer a streamlined process for future changes.

The commission did not adopt code changes during the session. Instead it gave staff direction: fix evident translation errors in the zoning tables for commercial uses, prepare parcel‑level maps that show opt‑out boundaries and changes since 2016, and return with clarified findings or a path to produce findings that could withstand legal challenge. Staff said they expect revised public‑review materials in the weeks ahead and will present corrected cannabis tables at the commission’s next meeting for final direction.

The item drew standing‑room public comment: supporters of opt‑outs urged retaining protections for town centers and tourist areas; others pressed for an opt‑in model or narrower, evidence‑based exclusions. Commissioners emphasized the need for a transparent, data‑driven approach before putting a public‑review draft into circulation.

Next steps: staff will provide corrected land‑use tables, parcel mapping for opt‑out areas and a recommendation about the process to amend overlay boundaries; the commission aims to finalize direction prior to a May public‑review release of the draft zoning code.