Stricter Permits Are Coming for North County Cannabis
Future ‘Grows’ Will Have to Be ‘Compatible’ with Neighborhood, County Supervisors Say
Two years after roundly rejecting the idea, the Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors this week voted 3-2 to tighten its regulation of outdoor cannabis cultivation on large farming properties, primarily in the North County.
On Tuesday, board Chair Joan Hartmann and supervisors Bob Nelson and Das Williams voted in concept to require conditional-use permits for all future outdoor “grows,” beginning four months from now. Supervisors Gregg Hart and Steve Lavagnino opposed the measure, as they did when it first came to the board in mid-2020. It returns to the board for a final vote on August 16.
Crucially, the stricter permits would not apply to cannabis greenhouse operations in the Carpinteria Valley, one of the largest pot-producing regions in California. And they come after the county has already approved 1,855 acres of outdoor cannabis in unincorporated areas, largely under more permissive permits.
