Notice of Intent to Adopt MND for EA No. 200042 (CEQ200042) for CUP200014

Notice of Intent to Adopt a Mitigated Negative Declaration for Environmental Assessment No. 200042 (CEQ200042) for CUP200014

Project Information

CONDITIONAL USE PERMIT NO. 200014 and DEVELOPMENT AGREEMENT NO. 2000004 – Intent to Adopt a Mitigated Negative Declaration – (CEQ200042) – State Clearinghouse Number: SCH 2022080376 – Applicant: Vortex Farms, c/o Judy Lee Bailey-Savage and Brett Bailey – Third Supervisorial District – San Jacinto District/San Jacinto Valley Area Plan – Agricultural (AG) – Location: north of Benji Lane, southwest of Minto Way, east of Sage Road – 10.40 Gross Acres – Zoning: Heavy Agriculture (A-2-10) - REQUEST: CONDITIONAL USE PERMIT NO. 200014 is a proposal for a Small Mixed Light Cannabis Cultivation on 10.40 gross acres. The facility would include: two (2) 3,000 sq. ft. greenhouses; one (1) 1,500 sq. ft. greenhouse; two (2) 1,200 sq. ft. greenhouses for mature/flowering cannabis cultivation (totaling 9,900 sq. ft. of mature canopy); two (2) 1,000 sq. ft. greenhouses for cloning, vegetation, or seed production (propagation cultivation), all newly constructed. All greenhouses for the facility would total 11,900 sq. ft. The facility would include one (1) trailer for office/storage/security purposes and a bathroom structure for employees. Security will be onsite 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. The cultivation facility shall be accessed via a newly constructed driveway from Minto Way with two (2) parking spaces (one for ADA) and include covered trash bins enclosed by a chain-link fence. A new six-foot-high chain-link fence with vertical privacy slats, plus a six-foot-high redwood fence would surround the facility with existing landscaping to provide overall screening. The facility would include a basin and solar panels to serve the operation. The remainder of the project site, approximately 6.78 acres, would be dedicated to MSHCP Conservation. There is no caretaker’s unit on site. DEVELOPMENT AGREEMENT NO. 2000004 is associated with the proposed Conditional Use Permit and will impose a lifespan of 10 years on the proposed cannabis project, will grant the applicant vesting rights to develop the project in accordance with the terms of CUP200014 and DA2000004, and provides community benefits to the San Jacinto Valley Area. APN: 470-070-043.

By this notice, the County is announcing the opening of the 30-day comment period (August 19, 2022, to September 19, 2022). All written comments must be received in writing by September 19, 2022, by 5:00 p.m. (end of the 30-day public review period). Please send all comments via mail to Riverside County Planning Department, Attention: Tim Wheeler, 4080 Lemon Street, 12^th Floor, Riverside, CA 92501 OR via email to [email protected]

PROJECT LOCATION:

The project site is east of Sage Road, south of Minto Way, and north of Benji Lane within the San Jacinto Valley Area Plan.