Cannabis Update: 8 Apply for Dispensary License

The process to bring at least one, possibly two cannabis dispensaries to Healdsburg is moving into its next stage, with the submission of eight applications for the coveted business licenses.

The applicants are currently in a period of evaluation by the city and HdL, the consultant engaged by the city to manage the process. A “letter of completeness” to the applicants is expected this week; it’s possible one or more of the applicants will not meet the city’s threshold for the licenses, and the list of eight will be reduced.

More than half of the cities in the county have already welcomed dispensaries to their jurisdictions—the exceptions to date being Petaluma, Rohnert Park, Windsor and Healdsburg.

Healdsburg’s reluctance to enter the market has faded in the last couple years, and the licensing of cannabis businesses is now underway. In April 2023, the council adopted a comprehensive cannabis policy and a competitive process for business licenses. Preparatory to the current process, the city approved a separate tax rate for cannabis businesses of up to 8%.

Along with the names of the applicants, their chosen location for a dispensary has also been announced. Although it is allowed for more than one applicant to choose the same location  (though only one dispensary would be allowed at any given address), the list of applicants shows that each has zeroed in on a different location.

The process of identifying approved zones for a cannabis business resulted in a final map (available on the city’s cannabis portal at healdsburg.gov/cannabis). The areas exclude the downtown commercial zone and locations 500 feet from schools, youth centers and child care facilities, or 250 feet from public parks and libraries. 

The applicants, and their respective identified locations, are as follows:

·        Sonoma CHO (DBA Flora Terra), at 498 Moore La.

·        JF Healdsburg LLC (DBA Jane), at 44D Mill St.

·        Kure Healdsburg, SPC (DBA Kure Wellness), at 434 Hudson St.

·        Mercy Wellness Healdsburg, at 20 Dry Creek Rd.

·        OTC Healdsburg LLC (DBA Off the Charts), at 129-133 Healdsburg Ave.

·        465 Retail LLC (DBA Solful), at 465 Healdsburg Ave.

·        Garden PARC LLC (DBA Sparc), at 1241 Grove St.

·        Chroma Inc (DBA Thi Wellness), at 51 Front St.

Many of these businesses already run dispensaries in Sonoma County. Sparc, for instance, currently has three, one in Sonoma, one in Santa Rosa and one in Sebastopol.

Jane has two locations, one on Highway 116 outside of Cotati, and one in the City of Santa Rosa. Mercy Wellness has a Cotati dispensary, as well as a downtown Santa Rosa dispensary. And Solful also has two, in Sebastopol and Santa Rosa.

Several of these companies have already begun public outreach asking for support from residents for their bids. Mercy Wellness has a black van strategically located at their selected location, at the former DiVine Pizza at 20 Dry Creek Rd.

Jane has posted fliers in the downtown  area, though their chosen location is a bit less visible, in the former Mill Street Antiques space. Both have QR codes to enable passersby to access their websites for information and to log their support.

Other applicants may have similar outreach efforts. But at this point, the people they need to convince are city staff and HdL contractors who will review their applications and, beginning late this month, start a multi-step evaluation process, including background checks, financial evaluation, liability and indemnification, and zoning clearance.

It’s expected the interviews for the applicants that remain—a winnowing process is normal at this stage of the process—will take place in October.

“In order to ensure fairness and respect the competitive process, applicant materials will be released and posted after the competitive scoring process is complete, and prior to City Council determination,” reads a notice on the city’s page devoted to the process, at Healdsburg.gov/cannabis.