HomeMy WebLinkAboutC-20-3 Authentic 559 LLC RedactedApplicant (Entity) Information
Application Type
Proposed Location
Commercial Cannabis Business
Permit Application
C-20-3
Submitted On: Dec 01, 2020
Applicant
Ellen Wysocki
ellen.wysocki@shrynegroup.com
Applicant (Entity) Name:
Authentic 559 LLC
DBA:
Authentic Fresno
Physical Address:
4248 W Ashlan Avenue
City:
Fresno
State:
CA
Zip Code:
93722
Primary Contact Same as Above?
No
Primary Contact Name:
Brian Mitchell
Primary Contact Title:
Co-CEO / Co-Owner
Primary Contact Address:
728 E Commercial St.
Primary Contact City:
Los Angeles
Primary Contact State:
CA
Primary Contact Zip Code:
90012
Primary Contact Phone:
(415)336-0374
Primary Contact Email:
brian.mitchell@shrynegroup.com
HAS ANY INDIVIDUAL IN THIS APPLICATION APPLIED FOR
ANY OTHER CANNABIS PERMIT IN THE CITY OF FRESNO?:
Yes
Select one or more of the following categories. For each
category, indicate whether you are applying for Adult-Use (“A”)
or/and Medicinal (“M”) or both
Both
Please make one selection for permit type. If making multiple
applications, please submit a new application for each permit
type and proposed location.
Permit Type
Retail (Storefront)
Business Formation Documentation:
Limited Liability Company
Property Owner Name:
MMPF LLC - Manager is Manuel Perales
Proposed Location Address:
4248 W Ashlan Avenue
City:
Fresno
State:
CA
Zip Code:Property Owner Phone:
Supporting Information
Application Certification
93722
Property Owner Email:Assessor's Parcel Number (APN):
510-100-48S
Proposed Location Square Footage:
7800
List all fictitious business names the applicant is operating under including the address where each business is located:
The applicant was formed for the purpose of applying for a cannabis permit in Fresno and does not have any operations yet.
Has the Applicant or any of its owners been the subject of any
administrative action, including but not limited to suspension,
denial, or revocation of a cannabis business license at any time
during the past three (3) years?
No
Is the Applicant or any of its owners currently involved in an
application process in any other jurisdiction?
Yes
If so, please list and explain:
El Cerrito, Fairfield, Tracy, El Centro, Union City, Stanton, and Concord. These are all for storefront retail applications.
I hereby certify, under penalty of perjury, on behalf of myself
and all owners, managers and supervisors identified in this
application that the statements and information furnished in this
application and the attached exhibits present the data and
information required for this initial evaluation to the best of my
ability, and that the facts, statements, and information
presented are true and correct to the best of my knowledge and
belief. I understand that a misrepresentation of fact is cause for
rejection of this application, denial of the permit, or revocation
of a permit issued.
In addition, I understand that the filing of this application grants
the City of Fresno permission to reproduce submitted materials
for distribution to staff, Commission, Board and City Council
Members, and other Agencies to process the application.
Nothing in this consent, however, shall entitle any person to
make use of the intellectual property in plans, exhibits, and
photographs for any purpose unrelated to the City's
consideration of this application.
Furthermore, by submitting this application, I understand and
agree that any business resulting from an approval shall be
maintained and operated in accordance with requirements of
the City of Fresno Municipal Code and State law. Under penalty
of perjury, I hereby declare that the information contained in
within and submitted with the application is true, complete, and
accurate. Iunderstand that a misrepresentation of the facts is
cause for rejection of this application, denial of a permit or
revocation of an issued permit. A denial or revocation on these
grounds shall not be appealable (FMC 9-3319(d)).
Name and Digital Signature
true
Title
Retail Expansion Analyst
Please note: the issuance of a permit will be determined based
on the application you submit and any major changes to your
business or proposal (i.e. ownership, location, etc.) after your
application is submitted may result in a denial.
All applications submitted are considered public documents for
Public Records Act request purposes.
For details about the information required as part of the
application process, see the Application Procedures &
Guidelines, City of Fresno Municipal Code Article 33 and any
additional requirements to complete the application process. All
documents can be found online via this link.
For questions please contact the City Manager’s Office at
559.621.5555.
1. BUSINESS PLAN
1.1. Owner Qualifications
The applicant Authentic 559 LLC (“Authentic Fresno”) is owned by Shryne Group Inc. (“Shryne”) and
Fresno County local Matt Garza. Shryne is the parent entity and owner of various other cannabis retail,
manufacturing, cultivation, distribution, real estate and IP assets.
1. Industry Best Testing Standards
Shryne’s three cultivation facilities, three manufacturing facilities and three distribution centers are each
equipped with the most rigorous testing, inspection and compliance standards to ensure that the products
which are eventually delivered and sold at Authentic Fresno are the safest and purest cannabis products
in the world.
For example, while the State of California only requires products to undergo one stage of regulatory
compliance testing prior to being sold to consumers pursuant to 16 CCR § 5715, all of Authentic Fresno’s
products will undergo two additional layers of testing to ensure the safety of our products as follows:
1. All of the flower and trim cultivated at our cutting-edge cultivation facilities and any third-party
flower we purchase for use in our manufactured products are initially sent to our third-party
testing provider CannaSafe, one of the most trusted names in cannabis testing. The flower and
trim are tested for:
i. cannabinoid potency (e.g., THC and CBD levels)
ii. pesticide levels of more than 70 different types of pesticides
iii. microbial pathogens (e.g., fungi, E. coli, salmonella)
iv. mycotoxins (e.g., Aflatoxin B1, Ochratoxin A, etc.)
v. heavy metals (lead, mercury, cadmium, arsenic, etc.)
vi. moisture levels (to determine whether products are ready for long term storage)
vii. foreign materials (e.g., molds, sand, dirt, hairs, cinders, etc.)
viii. terpene identification and quantification (e.g., β-Myrcene, α-Pinene, β-Caryophyllene, etc.)
Any flower or trim which do not pass every aspect of this initial test is destroyed.
2. Next, any flower or trim which has been extracted into an oil, wax or other concentrates will
undergo a second round of testing with CannaSafe for three reasons. One, while the initial testing
when the concentrate was in a flower or trim form should have picked up all impurities, the levels
of potency, metals or foreign materials oftentimes increase when the flower or trim is distilled
into concentrate form. Two, double checking for contaminants prior to any concentrate being
used and touching our manufacturing equipment is essential to prevent cross contamination
of other products which will be used by our manufacturing equipment. Finally, particularly
for concentrates purchased from third parties, testing at this stage involves testing for residual
solvents such as acetone, benzene, ethanol, methanol and other solvents which producers
sometimes use in the distillation process.
In contrast, cannabis dispensaries that are not vertically integrated cannot guarantee the safety and
quality of the products they are selling because they do not control the cultivation and manufacturing
processes.
2. Product Quality
In addition to the purity and safety of the products which Shryne’s vertical integration can assure, this
integration permits us to offer the highest quality and most effective products in the market today.
The two extra layers of testing at the cultivation and extraction levels allow us to inspect cannabinoid
composition and potency levels, terpene levels (which can affect taste) and moisture levels (which can
affect shelf life and texture), all of which need to meet Shryne’s proprietary formulation standards.
Such attention to detail and commitment to producing the highest quality flower, edibles, oils and other
products have led to our products having a cult like following at our stores and at over 90% of stores in
California. In fact, our Honeyleaf, Efex, Palmas, Stiiizy, Biiit, and Liiit brands which come in flower,
oil, edible, tincture, pure-CBD and other delivery systems are some of the most popular products in
California as evidenced by the fact that we were named the most popular marijuana brand in the United
States as of December 2019 according to Pioneer Intelligence and Brand of the Year by California
Cannabis Awards3. Many of the customers at our retail stores cite our vast selection of these in-house
brands as one of the main reasons they continue to return to our stores. Much like other popular brands
such as Burberry or Nike which also have their own dedicated retail stores, the loyal following of our in-
house brands equates to an instant customer base upon opening of our retail stores.
3 https://www.greenstate.com/cannabis-awards/california-cannabis-awards-hand-out-top-honors-to-industry-leaders-in-2019/
3. Competitive Pricing
In addition to the safety and quality of the products sold at our stores, our vertical integration provides
all our retail stores the competitive advantage of being able to sell our products at prices which are on
average 27% less than the average licensed California dispensary.
In California, illicit market sales of marijuana currently dwarf the sale of marijuana at legally licensed
dispensaries on a 3:1 basis due to the cheaper prices these illicit market sellers are able to charge.4 Illicit
market stores and delivery services are unaffected by the state and city taxes, restrictions on hours of
operation, sale volume limits, product testing requirements and other regulations which increase the
prices of legally sold products. As a result, legal dispensaries are struggling to meet their estimated tax
promises to cities and the State or even stay open because illegal stores are able to sell products at 25%
less than legal stores.5
Authentic Fresno, on the other hand, will be able to leverage its parent company’s “in-house”
cultivation, manufacturing and distribution operations so that the end product sold to our consumers will
be on average 27% cheaper than our competitors.
4 https://www.sacbee.com/news/politics-government/capitol-alert/article234150842.html
5 https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/11/las-black-market-for-weed-threatens-the-growth-of-its-legal-business.html https://bdsanalytics.com/new-report-californias-legal-cannabis-market-on-track-to-reach-3-1-billion-in-2019-sales-7-2-billion-in-2024/
See below revenue numbers and taxes paid for the month of September 2020 (Union Street San
Francisco opened in October and is not included).
City Gross Sales Sales Tax Local Cannabis Tax
6 https://www.cnbc.com/2019/03/28/medmens-financial-troubles-are-a-warning-for-the-marijuana-industry.html https://mjbizdaily.com/profits-are-a-rarity-californias-new-regulated-marijuana-market-six-months-in/
1.2. Budget
4. Employees arrive at the retail storefront location and proceed to the employee parking area to
park their vehicle.
5. Employees exit vehicle and perform a brief visual inspection of the outer perimeter of the facility
for loitering, tampering, unlawful entry, or any other security or safety issue.
6. Employees ensure air conditioning/heat is set and turned on as appropriate.
7. Employees verify that carbon filters/HVAC are in working order and cannabis odor is not present
inside or outside the facility.
8. Employees check to ensure line up area inside and outside have markers for customers to stand at
least 6 feet apart.
9. Employees turn on and start computer and verify IndicaOnline is working.
10. Employees ensure all city and state cannabis and business licenses are properly displayed.
11. Employees ensure all educational handouts and other materials for customers are visible and
available for the day’s customers.
12. Employees ensure all no-loitering signs, no consumption on-site signs and age requirement signs
are properly displayed.
13. Employees turn on equipment at point-of-sale locations.
14. Employees check store email and respond to emails as necessary. Review other notes from prior
night’s closing team.
15. Manager will access the safes to withdraw appropriate amounts of cash for point-of-sale
locations and provide to Sales Associates.
16. Security and Employees verify that security cameras are working.
17. All employees verify that limited-access room key card works and that cannabis and safes are
secure.
18. Employees check that waste bins were emptied the night before and any empty boxes or
containers are cleared away.
19. Employees check if the soap dispensers and first-aid box need replenishing.
20. Employees report any equipment failures to manager on site.
21. Employees sweep sidewalk and parking lot and pick up litter on sidewalk outside premises.
22. Manager and Employees check all areas for cleanliness.
23. Employees check reception desk for any messages from the closing employee.
24. Verify locked counters have adequate amounts of cannabis and that inventory is properly sealed,
packaging is intact and not damaged, and all products are not otherwise defective, leaking, or damaged.
25. Manager meets with employees to review daily goals, duties, and objectives.
26. Manager checks off opening procedures checklist.
27. Employees unlock front door for customers.
Closing Procedures
1. 15 minutes prior to closing, store will announce to customers that the store is closing.
2. Employees will verify that all customers have left the store.
3. After all customers have left, employees will lock the doors.
4. Employees will transfer all cannabis from sales floor into inventory room.
5. General Manager will transfer all money from the point of sales to the vault.
6. General Manager will perform daily cash reconciliation.
7. A Co-manager will generate log of all sales and transmit log to Track-and-Trace.
8. Employees ensure retail counters, safes, and inventory control room is locked.
9. Empty all waste bins and clear away any boxes or containers.
10. Clean all working and computer surfaces, using company-approved cleaning materials and
methods.
11. Set cooling or heating system for after-hours setting.
12. Leave any necessary messages for the morning shift the following day.
13. Enable all alarms.
14. Manager reviews and signs the closing procedures checklist.
15. Exit and lock doors.
16. Verify no loitering around the premises pursuant to FMC Article 33 § 9-3310(b)(2)(vi).
17. Check in with the overnight security guard.
1.6. Additional Criteria for Retail Applications
1.6.1. Day-to-Day Operations for a Retail License
i. Describe Customer Check-In Procedures.
After the store opening procedures are completed, Authentic Fresno will be ready for customers to
be checked in starting at 9:00 a.m. daily. Upon entering the store through the front entrance, every
customer’s temperature will be taken as a sign for COVID-19 symptoms. After the temperature
check, each customer and medical patient will be required to check in and show their IDs at the
reception desk placed at the front of the secure lobby prior to entering the sales floor pursuant to
FMC Article 33 § 9-3310(b)(1)(i). This lobby/waiting area will have markers for customers to
stand in line at least 6 feet apart as they wait to be checked in at the reception desk. The markers
will extend out into the parking lot area of the property so that customers are required to stand at
least 6 feet apart while they wait in the designated line outside.
The lobby and sales floor will be separated by an electronic “buzz-in” door and persons without proper
identification will not be permitted to cross this door into the retail floor pursuant to FMC Article 33 §
9-3310(a)(4). All employees will be trained on acceptable forms of identification according to 16 CCR
§ 5404(c), a summary of which is included below:
A. If the customer is 21+ years of age and entering the dispensary area, the customer must provide:
i. A document issued by federal, state, county, or municipal government, or a political subdivision
or agency thereof, including a valid motor vehicle operator’s license, that contains the name,
date of birth, height, gender, and a photograph of the person;
ii. A valid identification card issued to a member of the Armed Forces that includes the person’s
name, date of birth, and photograph; or
iii. A valid passport issued by the United States or by a foreign government.
B. If the customer is 18-20 years of age, the customer must provide one of the previously mentioned
forms of identification and possess a valid physician’s recommendation or a Medical Marijuana
Card. Under no circumstances will doctor recommendations be provided at the dispensary.
C. Only customers verified to be over the age of 21 and medical patients verified to be over the age of
18 will be allowed to remain on the premises in accordance with FMC Article 33 § 9-3309(i)(1).
D. Check-In Associates will not accept any form of
identification that is physically adulterated in any way
that impedes the employee from verifying the
individual’s identity to include the photograph, physical
attribute descriptions, and physical address location.
Check-In Associates will not accept identification that
is expired. Check-In Associates will be trained by
security personnel to recognize false and adulterated
forms of identification, and any individual caught
presenting false information will be banned from the facility.
Pursuant to FMC Article 33 § 9-3309(i)(2), Authentic Fresno
will also prominently post notices at the entrance to the
dispensary clearly and legibly stating that no person under the
age of 21 (except a medical patient over the age of 18) is
permitted on the premises. Pursuant to FMC Article 33 §
9-3309(k), Authentic Fresno will also conspicuously post in
the lobby the original copy of the commercial cannabis permit
Behind Glass Grab and Go
The customer will be able to approach any of the retail
counters to more closely peruse the product offerings and
consult with highly trained sales associates on the different
strains and product types available for purchase. Authentic
Fresno’s expert sales associates will warmly greet the
customer and will offer to every customer its educational
materials on the science of cannabis, safe dosing, delivery
methods, and the different strains of cannabis and their
effects, which will be updated on a bi-weekly basis. Employees will all wear conspicuous badges, in
accordance with 16 CCR § 5043, identifying themselves as employees so that customers can readily
ascertain who they can approach for questions.
Once the customer decides what they will purchase, the
sales associate will request the customer’s identification
a second time for additional security measures and, if
applicable, doctor’s recommendation as a second line of
defense against underage purchases of cannabis and to
pull up the customer’s profile that has been created in the
IndicaOnline point-of-sales system in accordance with FMC
Article 33 § 9-3309(e).
As part of Shryne Group’s mission to be accountable for all inventory, Shryne Group will mandate
the following product intake procedures to ensure the accountability and safe receipt of all products
delivered to this store:
• Before an order is placed with a vendor, the General Manager or Co-manager will confirm that the
distributor scheduled to deliver the products has a valid and active cannabis distribution license in
compliance with FMC Article 33 § 9-3309(f). Once verified, management will execute a purchase
order. Authentic Fresno and the distributor will then agree to a time window when the delivery
will be made (preferably between the hours of 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. when there are sufficient
employees and security to support the delivery (but never outside of 9:00 a.m. and 9:00 p.m.)).
• Upon a distributor’s arrival to the premises, a security guard or an operations employee will check
the identification of the driver to ensure the delivery has been scheduled for that time and day. Upon
confirming the identity of the vehicle and driver, the vehicle will be directed towards the right side of
the building towards the loading area. The employee who checked the identity of the driver will then
communicate to the security guard standing inside the loading/unloading area to unlock and open the
side door.
• The driver will park the vehicle and exit the vehicle
and unlock the double doors of the vehicle. At least two
employees will unload the products and move them into the
vestibule with the armed security guard present during the
entire process. The employees will check each batch being
offloaded against the purchase order to ensure the correct
batches of orders are being delivered. A more thorough check
of the products are conducted in the inventory room as described below. Once the cannabis products
have been offloaded, the driver will depart and the manager will place the delivered items into the
secure inventory room while still in the presence of a security guard.
• Delivery schedules will be staggered so that criminals cannot time or schedule a robbery.
• Once the products are in the inventory room, an inventory manager will count each individual item
in the delivery and compare it to the shipping manifest, confirming:
• Distributor’s name and license;
• Driver’s name;
• Delivery date and time;
• Invoice number;
• Product name;
• Product description;
• Product weight;
• Unit of measure;
• Number of units;
• Price per unit; and
• Total price.
• Each item will also be inspected to confirm that the products have not been adulterated with all
packaging intact.
• The inventory manager will then verify that the Certificate of Analysis (COA) received from the
distributor is:
• The COA that corresponds to the goods;
• Identical to the corresponding COA recorded in Track-and-Trace; and
• Less than 12 months old.
• The inventory manager will then confirm that each product is labeled with the batch number that
matches the batch number on the corresponding COA and that the label on each product is consistent
with the COA regarding cannabinoid content and contaminants required to be listed by law.
• Once the contents and amount of the products are confirmed, they will immediately be entered into
Authentic Fresno’s inventory platform IndicaOnline and METRC’s track and trace system.
• No cash will ever be exchanged at the drop off to further reduce the risk of a robbery.
• Finally, one surveillance camera will track the vehicle’s entrance into the loading area and the entire
off-loading process.
iii. Identify the Name of the Point-of-Sale System to be Used and the Number of Point-of-Sale
Locations.
Authentic Fresno will utilize the point of sale system IndicaOnline9, which Shryne Group
uses at all of its other retail locations. Every new customer will be required to register
with IndicaOnline after verifying that they are at least 21 years old. IndicaOnline will
register the following information onto the system which is integrated with METRC and
the other retail stores which Shryne operates:
• Name
• Address
• Date of Birth
• Photo ID
• Height and Weight
• Past Purchase Records to
inform the customer of
potential recalls
• Email and Phone Number
• Whether the customer has a
Medical Card
All of this information permits Authentic Fresno to contact customers in case of an emergency like
a recall or defective product. IndicaOnline also keeps track of past purchases so a customer does not
exceed the legally permissible amount and permits our sales team to send direct messages regarding
store sales if the customer has opted in to receive such information.
Additionally, the IndicaOnline Point of Sale system is integrated into the METRC track and trace system
so that all sales, returns and movement of inventory in and out of the store is sent via METRC to the
State of California.
9 https://indicaonline.com/dispensaries/
There will be 18 Point of Sale systems along the counters to assist the large number of customers we
expect at our store.
Once it is a customer’s turn to purchase a product, the sales associate will first check the customer’s
ID a second time as a second line of defense against underage purchasing. If the customer is eligible
to make a purchase, the sales associate will pull up the customer ’s profile on IndicaOnline, confirm
that the customer’s purchase does not exceed his or her daily limit and scan the product for sale on the
IndicaOnline system, which will update the inventory count in the store. Every purchase will also be
automatically sent to the State of California through the system’s integration with METRC.
iv. Estimate the Number of Customers to be Served per Hour/Day.
Shryne Group estimates that this Fresno dispensary will serve on average 43 customers per hour and an
average of 556 customers per day. The store will serve the most customers in between 12pm to 2pm and
between 6pm to 8pm during the weekdays and from 2pm to 7pm on the weekends. The store will also
likely serve the most customers Friday through Sunday. The table below shows the estimated number of
customers on each day.
v. Describe the Proposed Product Line to be Sold and Estimate the Percentage of Sales of Flower
and Manufactured Products.
Customers at Authentic Fresno will be able to choose from over 330 SKUs and 12 different types of
products, including flowers, oils, vapes, pre-rolls, topicals, and edibles from the over 70 California
vendors Shryne Group is currently engaged with and 15 of Shryne Group’s own in-house brands,
including Stiiizy, Honeyleaf, Efex, Palmas, Biiit, and Liiit. In fact, our in-house brands are the most
popular brands in California as evidenced by the fact that we were named the most popular marijuana
brand in the United States as of December 2019 according to Pioneer Intelligence10 and named 2019
Brand of the Year by California Cannabis Awards11. Shryne’s products are currently carried at 90% of
cannabis retail stores in California and many of our customers at our retail stores cite our vast selection
of these in-house brands as one of the main reasons they continue to return to our stores.
10 https://www.benzinga.com/markets/cannabis/19/10/14621437/report-cannabis-brands-stiiizy lowell-and dosist-dominate-marketing-while-mattio-pr-moves-the-ne
11 http://www.californiacannabisawards.com/
Whether the customer is looking for physical pain relief, assistance sleeping or is simply looking to
unwind, Authentic Fresno’s wide array of products from Shryne Group’s own in-house brands and
offerings from only the most reputable vendors will ensure there is something for every customer.
Because of Shryne Group’s vertical integration, approximately 60% of products sold at our stores will
have been within our chain of custody and tested multiple times from seed to sale. All third-party
products will also be strictly tested and their manufacturing and cultivation sites will be inspected to
ensure that such third-party products also meet Authentic Fresno’s safety, testing and purity standards.
See below the initial list of 330 SKUs we plan to carry at Authentic Fresno. An additional 50 – 100
SKUs will be added once the store is operational to account for products from Fresno-based cultivators
and manufacturers.
To assist customers in taking in and discerning the various products for sale, Authentic Fresno will also
permit third-party brands it carries to advertise their products free of charge through empty “vendor
boxes,” which will line the shelves along the walls behind the counters. The products will also be
separated by delivery type (e.g., flower, gummies) and by strain (e.g., sativa, indica, hybrid) to assist the
customer in identifying what they are looking for.
In accordance with 16 CCR § 5025(d), Authentic Fresno will not sell alcohol or tobacco products at its
dispensary.
vi. Describe Delivery Service Procedures, Number of Vehicles and Product Security During
Transportation.
Our experience in other cities has shown us that a well operated delivery business can provide an extra
30% in sales to the storefront retailer. The fact that our store is located within 250 feet off of the 99
Highway will allow us to deliver to areas as far as 60 miles away from the retail store. This expansive
reach will be necessary to cater to all of the customers who are unable to travel to Authentic Fresno’s
retail premises to still obtain the high-quality cannabis products they desire.
Delivery Service Procedures
Receiving Delivery Orders
Authentic Fresno customers will be able to make delivery orders through our proprietary online delivery
platform called Blaze. Customers are required to create an online profile with valid ID and a recent
photograph of the customer holding their ID. ID is checked again at the time of delivery. See below our
easy to use interface which permits online shoppers to filter by product type, price and weight.
Once a new delivery order is received, a sales associate will first confirm that the order complies with
daily sales limits and can be legally processed. The sales associate will then check that all of the desired
products are in stock and that the order can be fulfilled in accordance with the customer ’s expectations.
If all of the requested goods are available, then the sales associate will process the order as requested
by first documenting the customer’s identifying information and checking the delivery address online
to ensure that it is: (i) a physical address in California; (ii) not on publicly owned land or on land or in
a building leased by a public agency; and (iii) not a school providing instruction in kindergarten or any
grades 1 through 12, day care center, or youth center in accordance with 16 CCR § 5416.
Delivery Order Processing
As part of order fulfillment, a sales associate will prepare a Delivery Request Receipt that contains the
following information in accordance with 16 CCR § 5420(a):
i. Authentic Fresno’s name and address;
ii. The first name and employee number of the employee who will deliver the order;
iii. The first name and employee number of the employee who will have prepared the order for
delivery;
iv. The first name and Authentic Fresno-assigned customer number for the customer who placed
the delivery order;
v. The date and time of the delivery order;
vi. The delivery address provided by the ordering customer;
vii. A detailed description of all of the requested cannabis goods, including their weight, volume, or
another accurate measure of the amount; and
viii. The total amount paid for the delivery, including any taxes, fees, the cost of the cannabis goods,
and any other charges related to the delivery.
The same Delivery Request Receipt will later be updated by the Delivery Employee to include the date
and time the order was delivered, as well as the ordering customer’s signature confirming their receipt of
the order. The sales associate will also record this information in the customer’s profile in the point-of-sale
system, so that cannabis goods sold by Authentic Fresno can be tracked in the event of a product recall.
All ordered cannabis goods will be gathered from inventory storage by the Inventory Manager and he
or she will visually inspect each product to ensure that it is not expired, that the packaging is intact and
unopened, and that the product labeling is intact and legible. The Inventory Manager will then provide
the items to the sales associate. The sales associate will either scan or manually document each item
into the POS system. The following information will also be entered directly into Track-and Trace in
accordance with 16 CCR § 5049(b):
i. Name and type of cannabis goods;
ii. Unique Identifiers (UID) of cannabis
goods;
iii. Amount of cannabis goods, by weight or
count;
iv. Date and time of sale; and
v. Any other information required by
licensing authorities.
Delivery orders will only be fulfilled if Authentic Fresno has connectivity to Track-and-Trace.
To conclude order documentation, the sales associate will then add the ordered products to the delivery
driver’s Delivery Inventory Ledger, which will include for each good the: (i) type; (ii) brand; (iii) retail
value; (iv) UID; and (v) weight or volume. Based on then-current retail prices, the sales associate will
verify that the Delivery Inventory Ledger contains less than of cannabis goods as pursuant to 16
CCR § 5418(a). All delivery orders will then be placed into opaque exit packages, the same as previously
mentioned, and will be provided to the Delivery Employee with copies of the corresponding Delivery
Request Receipts and the Delivery Inventory Ledger in accordance with 16 CCR § 5418(e) & (g).
Delivery Vehicle Loading
When delivery vehicles are loaded for delivery, it will take place in Authentic Fresno’s loading area.
Pursuant to 16 CCR § 5044(d)(1), the delivery area will be under 24-hour video surveillance. Cannabis
goods will be loaded into the enclosed delivery vehicle by delivery employees, who will ensure that all
cannabis goods are locked in a fully-enclosed box, container, or cage that is secured on the inside of the
vehicle (but is not comprised of any part of the body of the vehicle) that is not visible to the public in
accordance with 16 CCR § 5417(b). Authentic Fresno’s Pre-Dispatch Checklist will be used by delivery
employees to ensure that all of the following items are in their possession and functioning properly prior
to departure:
• Delivery Inventory Ledger
• Delivery Request Receipt
• Delivery Stop Log
• Copy of Business license
• Copy of State license
• Driver’s license
• Employee identification
badge
• Age verification device
• Mobile telephone
• GPS device
• Sufficient fuel
• Alarm system
• Inventory containers and
locks
• Vehicle operator’s manual
• Spare tire and jack
GPS Tracking12
To facilitate identifying the geographic location of each delivery vehicle and creating a record of
all travel, each delivery vehicle will be outfitted with a dedicated GPS device that will be owned by
Authentic Fresno and used only for delivery. Each GPS device will be permanently or temporarily
affixed to the inside of a delivery vehicle, and devices will remain active throughout all deliveries to
enable Authentic Fresno to identify and document each vehicle’s location at all times during the delivery
process. Authentic Fresno will maintain for at least 90 days a record of all of the locations traveled to by
Delivery Employees during deliveries, and Authentic Fresno will provide these records to the City and
the Bureau of Cannabis Control immediately upon request.
Delivery Stop Log
In accordance with 16 CCR § 5418(f), a Delivery Stop Log will be maintained by Delivery Employees.
This is a log of any stops from the time the delivery employee leaves the dispensary to the time he or
she returns, including the reasons for each stop. After deliveries are completed, the Delivery Driver will
provide the Log to management, who will ensure that the log is retained and available for inspection
for at least seven years in compliance with 16 CCR § 5418(f). In accordance with 16 CCR § 5418(h)
(3), Delivery Employees will provide the log to the City, the Bureau of Cannabis Control, or any law
enforcement officer immediately upon request while out on deliveries.
Delivery Employee Communication
Communication between management and Delivery Employees will occur through the use of hands-free
telephones. Before departing from the dispensary for a delivery, a Delivery Employee will place and
receive a test call to management to confirm that the telephones are properly functioning. In addition to
general communications, Delivery Employees will utilize the hands-free telephones to report all adverse
delivery events to management, who will record all adverse events in a dedicated incident log.
Completing a Delivery
Five minutes prior to a driver’s arrival at the customer’s delivery address, the customer will be notified
that the delivery is 5 minutes away. When a Delivery Employee arrives at a customer’s delivery address,
he or she will first attempt to contact the ordering customer by knocking on his or her door or ringing the
doorbell. If the ordering customer does not respond after a reasonable time, the Delivery Employee will
return to the delivery vehicle and will attempt to call the customer using the telephone number
12 In accordance with 16 CCR § 5417(d).
the customer provided with the order. If there is still no response within 10 minutes of the Delivery
Employee’s first attempt to contact the ordering customer, he or she will return to the dispensary with
the customer’s entire order. If there is a response, the Delivery Employee will ensure that he or she
is communicating with the customer who placed the order by checking the customer’s appropriate
identification and will scan the identification with an age verification device to confirm that the
identification is valid and that the customer is of legal age to purchase cannabis in compliance with 16
CCR § 5415(f). After the customer’s identity and age have been verified, the Delivery Employee will
process payment and will physically transfer the cannabis goods to the customer. The customer will
then sign the Delivery Request Receipt provided by the Delivery Employee and will be provided with
a copy of the receipt as required in 16 CCR § 5420(b). The Delivery Employee will also retain a copy
of the signed Delivery Request Receipt to provide to management, who will maintain the receipt in
accordance with Authentic Fresno’s record retention policy and applicable rules and regulations as stated
in 16 CCR § 5420(b).
Number of Delivery Vehicles
Authentic Fresno intends to utilize 6 vehicles, which will be electric or hybrid vehicles, to provide
delivery services for its customers.
Product Security during Transportation
Product security during transportation is a priority to Authentic Fresno, as it reduces the likelihood of
product diversion and underage access. As such, Authentic Fresno will enforce the following policies,
among others, to ensure that products remain secure throughout the delivery process in compliance with
16 CCR § 5418 (a-d):
• All Delivery Employees will be at least 21 years old.
• All deliveries will be made by Authentic Fresno’s Delivery Employees (as opposed to third party
contractors).
• We will only employ Delivery Employees with a good driving history (e.g., no DUIs, driving with
suspended license, etc.)
• Deliveries will only be made during store hours.
• Cannabis products will not be visible from the outside.
• Delivery Employees will not be permitted to perform a large number of deliveries on each route to
limit the amount of cash and products in the vehicle. Delivery Employees will not carry cannabis
goods worth more than at any time.
• Only authorized employees will be allowed in the delivery vehicle during a cannabis goods delivery.
• Delivery Employees will not leave the store with cannabis goods without at least one delivery order
that has already been received and processed by the store (e.g., no roaming with cannabis goods).
• While carrying cannabis goods for delivery, Delivery Employees will only travel in an enclosed
delivery vehicle and will ensure the cannabis goods are not visible to the public.
• While making deliveries, the Delivery Employee shall only travel from the store to the delivery
address, to the delivery address to another delivery address or back to the store. The Delivery
Employee shall not deviate from the delivery path except for necessary rest, fuel, vehicle repair stops
or due to unsafe road conditions.
• Delivery vehicles will not have any marking on the exterior of the vehicle that may indicate the
presence of cannabis inside the vehicle.
• Delivery Employees will not leave cannabis goods unattended in the delivery vehicle unless the
vehicle is locked and the alarm system is active.
• A dedicated GPS device will be affixed to the inside of each delivery vehicle, enabling Authentic
Fresno to identify each vehicle’s location during delivery.
Additionally, as mentioned previously, Delivery Employees will be in constant communication with the
store’s inventory and delivery team via hands-free telephones. Delivery Employees are instructed to dial
9-1-1 if they feel threatened or they believe a crime is about to be committed. The inventory and delivery
team at the store will also keep track of the delivery vehicle’s whereabouts and will call the Delivery
Employee if there are unscheduled stops or other unusual activities. If they are not able to connect with
the Delivery Employee, the inventory manager will contact the police if he or she reasonably believes
there is a crime being committed or that the Delivery Employee is otherwise in danger.
2. SOCIAL POLICY AND LOCAL ENTERPRISE PLAN
2.1. Living Wages
Authentic Fresno is committed to paying a living wage. We have a “universal” Collective Bargaining
Agreement with the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union (UFCW) Local 8, which
covers Fresno’s jurisdiction, and have agreed in our CBA to pay living wages in all the cities in which
we operate. Pursuant to the CBA, Authentic Fresno’s minimum base pay will be per hour for our
most junior employees and will go all the way up to an hour for more senior hourly employees.
The compensation floor is per hour more than the minimum wage in Fresno of per hour for
companies with more than 25 employees and more than the living wage of Fresno according to
M.I.T.’s living wage calculator.13 Employees are also entitled to wage increases every 6 months.
The General Manager and Co-Managers will be salaried and will receive per year.
As the cost of living and the minimum wages increase, Authentic Fresno is committed to increasing its
minimum wage to match these costs of living increases so that all employees continue to receive living
wages.
2.2. Employee Benefits
In addition to living wages, Authentic Fresno will offer a comprehensive benefits package governed by
our CBA, which is one of the best in the industry.
Insurance Benefits. Authentic Fresno will offer Medical, Dental, and Vision Insurance benefits to its
retail employees through Anthem. Employees can choose from the Gold, Silver, Bronze PPO Plans or
the HMO Plan. The company will cover 70% of all insurance premiums of its employees.
Holidays. Full-Time Employees receive 10 paid-holidays per year and receive double wages if they
work on such holidays.
Paid Time Off. Employees will receive 72 hours of paid time off per year.
Sick/ Personal Leave. Employees receive 6 work days (48 hours) of paid sick leave per year.
Maternity/Paternity Leave. Authentic Fresno provides up to six (6) weeks of maternity and paternity leave.
13 https://livingwage.mit.edu/counties/06019
Continuing Education and Compensation for Education
Authentic Fresno and Shryne Group are committed to working with employees to develop each
individual’s talents, skills and abilities. As detailed below, Authentic Fresno will provide its employees
with a world class cannabis education. In addition, through the Shryne Group, Authentic Fresno will
provide training and continuing education beyond cannabis. The aim of this program is to provide
employees with a foundation to thrive at Authentic Fresno and in their future endeavors.
Workforce Development
In addition to providing competitive wages and the most comprehensive
benefits in the industry, Authentic Fresno will provide workforce
development for its Fresno employees at no cost to them and will pay for
our employees to receive college credits from these courses. Shryne’s goal
is to develop well-trained, skilled workers. Shryne and Los Angeles Trade Tech College have an agreement
for instructors from Los Angeles Trade Tech College to teach classes at all of Shryne’s retail,
manufacturing, distribution and cultivation facilities in California. The classes will be held every two to
three weeks at the Fresno store or via Zoom and will be free of charge to the employees. Employees who
were initially scheduled to work during the classes will be paid to attend the class. Classes include:
• Microsoft Word
• Microsoft Excel
• Creating PowerPoint Presentations
• Accounting
• Supply Chain Logistics
• Leadership
• Effective Communication
Classes are 2-3 hours long and upon completion, the employees will receive 1-3 college units which
can be transferred to any 2 or 4 year college. Shryne Group will pay for these college units so that
our employees will receive these college units at no cost to them. Employees also receive career
development counseling throughout the process and are considered for promotions or pay raises upon
completion. Curriculums are typically 8 – 10 classes each and are grouped by subject matter and
seniority. For example, the Microsoft Package curriculum are geared more towards junior employees
while the Leadership curriculum are for managers and up. This program launched in March 2020 and
has been a huge success with over 200 employees having completed one of the curriculums.
Angeles to learn about the cannabis industry. One of the participants of this program, Julian Domingo,
has become Head of Cultivation at our Los Angeles facility and is 3 months away from obtaining his
Certificate of Retail Management. Authentic Fresno hopes to replicate this program’s success in Fresno.
Our Letter of Intent with Fresno City College is attached at the end of Section 7.1 below.
Employee Training
Authentic Fresno’s employment practices begin with hiring diverse, quality staff. In that regard,
Authentic Fresno will hold a local job fair at its store prior to opening to attract local residents to apply
in conjunction with the UFCW. A background check will be conducted on every potential employee
Authentic Fresno is considering hiring. Once hired, every retail employee, will undergo 6 paid days
of training prior to working at the store to ensure that employees are knowledgeable, friendly, and
professional. The 6 days are broken up as follows:
Day 1 – State and City Laws and Regulations Governing Cannabis
Day 2 – Understanding All Rules and Related SOPs of the Authentic Retail Store
Day 3 – Sexual Harassment, Anti Diversion and Safety at the Workplace Training
Day 4 – Educating Against Abuse of Cannabis, Science of Cannabis, and Safe Dosing
Day 5 – Record Management, Inventory Management, and Cash Management
Day 6 – Interacting with and Educating the Customer
Additionally, each new retail employee who has completed the 6-day training program will initially be
paired with a more experienced retail employee behind the retail counter for the first 30-days of their
employment. The manager and the other retail employees are tasked with supervising the new employee
during the first 30-day period to ensure compliance with all laws, regulations and store SOPs.
Given the ever-changing nature of the cannabis industry, our training program also emphasizes
continuous improvement, and the Fresno retail team will be updated and retrained on a continual basis as
state and local laws and rules change. Managers are required to provide monthly reviews of each retail
employee for the first 90 days of employment so that any deficiencies can be addressed and remediated
immediately.
Additionally, the General Manager will hold monthly store meetings to touch on the following:
• Customer feedback and areas for improvement
• New product launches
• Recognition of instances of exceptional
customer service
• Changes in laws or regulations
• Concerns or questions from retail employees
This extensive and proprietary training program will allow Authentic Fresno to instill our employees
with the values of our founders which Shryne was built upon. Our retail employees are our ambassadors
to our customers and the communities in which we operate and we take great pride in ensuring that our
pillars of safety, inclusion, and education of the public are portrayed by our employees.
Customers at our retail stores frequently comment that one of the reasons they come back to our
stores is the level of knowledge and professionalism of our employees. As a reflection of our highly
trained employees, we were proud to learn that one of our Los Angeles store employees, Valerie
Davalos, was recently named one of the top 25 cannabis retail employees in the United States by Green
Entrepreneur14. Valerie was recognized for her expert knowledge in all of the products we offer and her
ability to educate customers on safe and effective use and dosage. Shryne is extremely proud of Valerie
and the other 800 employees who have completed our rigorous training program and strive to provide
the best customer service at all our stores.
14 https://www.greenentrepreneur.com/slideshow/343079
2.4. Plans to Recruit Individuals Who meet Social Policy Section 9-3316(B)(1)
We plan to hire at least 50% of our employees from people who meet the criteria listed in FMC Article
33 § 9-3316(b)(1) (the Employment Social Policy section). We will recruit and hire individuals who
meet those criteria as follows:
• Fresno Economic Development Corporation15: We have entered into a partnership with the Fresno
Economic Development Corporation (FEDC) whereby we will donate annually towards
their job and business development efforts in Fresno. As part of this partnership, we are working
with the FEDC to recruit individuals who have annual family income below 80% AMI, lived in
foster care as a minor, are unemployed or are receiving public assistance. The FEDC has agreed
15 https://www.fresnoedc.com/
to help us recruit individuals who meet the criteria in FMC Article 33 § 9-3316(b)(1) through the
following:
• The FEDC will act as a liaison with the Fresno Department of Social Services who assists
Fresno residents who require social services and are looking for jobs;
• The FEDC has a “job matching” website whereby employers and individuals seeking
employment are matched based on skill set and interests of the employee candidate;
• The FEDC will assist us in holding job fairs and targeting job fairs towards individuals who
meet certain criteria.
Our agreement with the FEDC is included in Section 7.1 below.
• JVS16 and Vet Hunters17: We currently work with JVS (Jobs.Vision.Success.) and Vet Hunters
to place veterans at our various facilities across California. If selected to open a store in Fresno,
we will work with these organizations to find veterans for positions at our store. Our Co-Founder,
James Kim, is a disabled army veteran who served a 13-month tour in Iraq with the 101st Airborne
Division, and he is committed to hiring as many veterans at our operations as possible.
• Fresno City College: We have entered into a partnership with Fresno City College to provide
scholarships for Fresno residents who have annual family income below 80% AMI or who live in
low to moderate income tracts in the city to attend Fresno City College. As part of our partnership,
Fresno City College will help us identify low income residents who would be interested in working
at our facility. Our agreement with Fresno City College is included in Section 7.1 below.
• UFCW: Our union partner, the UFCW, will host expungement clinics at our store as we have done
at our other locations which is more fully described in Section 7.1 below. We have been able to meet
very qualified candidates at our past expungement clinics and we hope to be able to recruit and hire
individuals who were convicted of a cannabis related crime which could have been misdemeanors or
citations under current law.
In addition to the existing partnerships we have in place with the Fresno Economic Development Corps.,
JVS, Vet Hungers, Fresno City College and the UFCW, we will work with our local owner, Matt Garza,
who has deep ties to the community to recruit and hire individuals who meet the criteria under Fresno’s
Social Policy.
16 https://www.jvs-socal.org/veteran-services/
17 https://vethunters.org/
Additionally, we plan to hire 70% of our employees from within the City of Fresno. Prior to our
opening, we will hold job fairs targeted towards local residents in conjunction with the UFCW and our
local partner Matt Garza so that we can identify local residents. The Fresno Economic Development
Corps. has also agreed to help us identify local residents so that we can meet our goal of hiring at least
70% Fresno residents.
2.5. Local Ownership and Management
Matt Garza owns 51% of the applicant entity, Authentic 559 LLC, and is a life-long resident of Fresno
County. Matt has owned and operated a local business within the City of Fresno since August 2017. The
business, G7 Commercial LLC, is a real estate investment and management company which develops
real estate within the City of Fresno. G7 Commercial LLC operates out of 4535 E Belmont Avenue,
Fresno, CA 93702. This business developed a raisin farm within the City of Fresno in 2019 and has
developed numerous other properties within Fresno. Matt currently resides in (Fresno
County) and has lived there since May 2016. Matt has lived on and off in the City of Fresno, including
during his time at Fresno State University. See below the first and last page of the lease executed by G7
Commercial LLC for their headquarter at 4535 E Belmont Avenue, Fresno CA 93702.
2.7. Labor Peace Agreement and Collective Bargaining Agreement
Authentic Fresno will have more than 5 employees. Shryne Group, Authentic Fresno’s parent entity,
entered into a Labor Peace Agreement with the UFCW Local 8, which covers the Fresno area. The
Labor Peace Agreement applies to all of Shryne Group’s subsidiaries, including Authentic Fresno. We
also entered into a Collective Bargaining Agreement with the UFCW Local 8 on March 25, 2020 and
our Authentic Fresno store will be unionized under the terms of this CBA if the employees so desire. A
letter of support from the local UFCW 8 is set forth below.
These programs reflect our company’s mission to provide as many people as possible the opportunity
to make a career in cannabis and to own or operate a cannabis business. By combining structured
educational classes through Fresno City College or our Workforce Development Program with hands-on
experience working at our facilities, we hope our programs create successful owners and operators of
cannabis businesses.
2.8.3. Living Wages
Pursuant to our Collective Bargaining Agreement with the UFCW Local 8, we will pay living wages of
for our associates, for our Co-Managers and to our
General Manager. These wages are well in excess of Fresno’s living wage of Our associates are
also eligible for raises every 6 months. As the cost of living increases in Fresno, we will increase our
minimum wages so that we are always paying our employees well over the living wage in Fresno.
2.9. Social Equity Incubation
Shryne Group currently supports 13 individuals in San Francisco, Oakland and Los Angeles who qualify
as social equity cannabis owners in these respective cities. These social equity applicants were all required
to have a household income below 80% of the average median income in the respective cities in which
they live (i.e. Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Oakland). In these cities, Shryne Group has provided 10
social equity individuals between 25 – 50% of the ownership of the stores currently in operation and of the
stores which will open in the fourth quarter of 2020 at NO costs to these social equity partners. Shryne
Group pays for the startup and buildout costs of these stores and is providing all of the legal, accounting
and business support (including our wide distribution network) necessary to operate the business. Many of
these social equity partners also work at the stores which they own so that they can learn about the cannabis
industry which they have an ownership interest in. In Oakland, Shryne Group is also incubating 3 social
equity individuals by providing them with free rent on spaces for them to operate their manufacturing and
distribution businesses and also by providing them with legal, accounting and business assistance for their
businesses. We have also committed to providing social equity owner Marquin Chandler of Oakland shelf
space for his cannabis brands.
Most recently, our social equity partner Cindy De La Vega became the first Latina to own a cannabis
dispensary in San Francisco. We paid for 100% of the buildout of this San Francisco store, all of the
legal and accounting fees and all other fees and expenses which were required to obtain the cannabis
license and get the store up and running. Cindy owns 50% of this store as our social equity partner.
As we have done in San Francisco, Oakland and Los Angeles, we are committed to serving as a Social
Equity Business Incubator in Fresno. We are committed to providing at least a year to the
Fresno Community Reinvestment Fund to assist Social Equity cannabis operators. Additionally, we are
committed to providing the following to the Social Equity Applicants in Fresno:
• Providing legal, accounting and compliance advice;
• Providing assistance so that Social Equity Applicants can properly fill out all city and state cannabis
license forms (we have held seminars to assist Los Angeles Social Equity Applicants fill out their
city and state cannabis license forms);
• Providing shelf space to Fresno Social Equity manufacturers, cultivators and distributors;
• Providing Social Equity Applicants with equipment for their businesses;
• Providing mentorship and assisting Social Equity Applicants to develop their business plan; and
• Connecting Social Equity Applicants with our large distribution network so that manufacturers,
distributors and cultivators have a place to sell or distribute their products and so that retailers have
access to a stable and reputable supply chain of products.
Our doors will always be open to the Social Equity Applicants of Fresno and we hope to be able to
provide the support to help them succeed in Fresno as we have done in other cities in which we operate.
3. NEIGHBORHOOD COMPATIBILITY PLAN
3.1. Complaint Management Related to Noise, Light, Odor, Litter and Traffic
As a first step to building a relationship with our neighbors, Authentic Fresno held a virtual open house
on September 3, 2020 and invited all neighbors within 1000 feet of our location to attend. Invitations
were sent in English and Spanish to ensure that all of our neighbors had the opportunity to participate.
At this virtual open house, we were able to introduce ourselves to the neighbors and able to answer
questions regarding our operations. If we are awarded a license, we will host another open house
approximately 4 weeks prior to opening to listen to any concerns from the neighboring residents and
businesses. At this open house, we will introduce our Community Benefits Director DeRon Waller and
provide his contact information so that the neighbors can contact us with any questions or concerns.
DeRon’s contact information will also be posted on the front door of the facility so that the community
has a point of contact to address any concerns.
Additionally, as explained in more detail below, Authentic Fresno will implement proactive measures to
manage noise, light, odor, litter and traffic.
Noise
Authentic Fresno will proactively manage noise at its premises. Authentic Fresno will ensure that sound
is not detectable outside its premises. In accordance with FMC Chapter 10 § 10-105 (Fresno’s noise
ordinance), Authentic Fresno’s operations will not exceed 65 decibels when measured outside to ensure
we do not make any noise which causes discomfort or annoyance to any persons living or working in the
area. Authentic Fresno has adopted the following techniques to reduce sound. First, Authentic Fresno will
not utilize exterior speakers to broadcast music or to make announcements. Second, Authentic Fresno will
not play music inside in excess of 50 decibels at any time. Third, windows and doors will not be left open
during operating hours. Fourth, Authentic Fresno will build out its stores with physical soundproofing as a
courtesy to neighbors. Fifth, Authentic Fresno will not host events at its location that result in large crowds
gathering. Finally, security will patrol to verify noise is not detectable outside the premises.
Light
Authentic Fresno will incorporate light into all aspects of its operation to provide literal transparency
to its business, allowing customers and staff to see clearly exactly what goes on in and around the sales
area. A well-lit space is also vital for customer security. At the same time, light can bother neighbors,
especially at night. Authentic Fresno has taken great care to utilize lighting that will facilitate safety
without imposing such a burden.
Authentic Fresno will ensure its lighting is not excessive, obtrusive, or misdirected. Authentic Fresno
will proactively manage light in the following ways. First, Authentic Fresno will not illuminate its
interior premises when it is closed for business. Lighting necessary for security operations will be the
only exception. Second, Authentic Fresno will utilize shielded lighting on the exterior of its premises.
Shielded lighting will ensure that light only travels downward on the premises, not upward and
outward towards neighbors. In addition, the outdoor lighting’s intensity will be only what is reasonably
necessary for security purposes.
These light-control measures and the fact that we do not have any immediate neighbors within 100 feet
will ensure that light from Authentic Fresno’s premises does not intrude onto its neighbors’ properties.
Odor
Authentic Fresno will utilize one of the most comprehensive odor control programs in the industry,
which is more fully described in Section 3.3. For example, Authentic Fresno will install carbon filters
on its premises to purify the air and employees will regularly monitor the lifespan of and replace
carbon filters as necessary to ensure the system is working properly. Authentic Fresno will also utilize
a negative air pressure system so that air is only disbursed out of the building after it has been cleaned
by our carbon filtration system. Moreover, Authentic Fresno will retain an environmental engineer to
maintain its carbon filter system. In addition, Authentic Fresno will only accept and sell pre-packaged
cannabis goods. It will neither package cannabis goods on-site nor allow any consumption of cannabis
goods on-site. The lack of raw packaging and consumption will substantially reduce odor-causing
activities. Security will monitor exterior odors while on patrol and employees will document any
instances of odor or odor complaints with the Odor Documentation Forms described in Section 3.3.
Any neighbor complaints or instances of odor detected by security or employees will be immediately
documented and remediated within 24 hours. If the odor cannot be remediated internally, engineers will
be engaged within 24 hours to remediate the issue.
In short, Authentic Fresno’s state of the art odor control system, its proactive protocols which requires
employees to be vigilant about detecting odor and our commitment to remediate any odor will ensure
that odor does not negatively affect the neighborhood. To date, Shryne Group has not received a single
complaint regarding odor associated with its stores.
Litter
As part of our daily store opening standard operating procedures and in compliance with FMC Article
33 § 9-3309(n), operations and retail employees will be tasked with sweeping the exterior prior to the
opening of the store. Employees will also conduct cleanup of the exterior throughout the day and are
trained to be on the lookout for any litter in the exterior. During the shift change, typically at 2pm,
incoming and outgoing employees are required to ensure that there is no litter in the exterior of the
facility. Any litter spotted by any of the employees will either be swept or picked up by the employees
and disposed of.
Vehicle Traffic
To proactively manage traffic, Authentic Fresno has selected a location with 94 parking spots and
away from residences and other businesses (the Ashlan Inn, the business closest to our location, is
permanently closed). The fact that the store has 94 dedicated parking spaces and is surrounded by
vacant lots should minimize any increase in traffic from the popularity of our store.
Additionally, the property has two points of ingress and egress from Ashlan Ave. Thus, any dispensary-
related increase in traffic will be negligible in comparison to the overall traffic flow. Second, the
abundant parking means that customers will have ample access to parking and will not need to park on
any of the streets nearby.
If parking becomes problematic (which is very unlikely), Authentic Fresno will work to engage parking
attendants as it has at its Downtown Los Angeles store. This will ensure order and efficiency in the
parking lot and reduce the chance of congestion or overfill from the parking lot. Finally, Authentic
Fresno may offer discounts to customers during non-peak hours and discounts to customers who pre-
order their products for pickup. This will encourage customers to access the store when it is less busy.
Pedestrian Traffic
4248 W Ashlan Ave does not have heavy pedestrian traffic due to the fact that there is only two
businesses within 500 feet of this location (a 7-Eleven and Valero gas station). The sidewalk on Ashlan
Avenue is also separated from the store by our large parking lot which should prevent any customers
from affecting pedestrian traffic near our store. The sidewalks will also ensure safe and orderly
pedestrian access to the property.
In order to ensure pedestrians and customers do not become a nuisance to neighbors, customers will
not be permitted to loiter around the store. Authentic Fresno’s security team will monitor pedestrian
activities at the location and will conduct perimeter walks around the vicinity of our location to ensure
there is no loitering, illegal activity or consumption of cannabis products near our store. Any lines that
form due to the store’s popularity will be formed in an orderly fashion on the south and eastern side of
the building so that lines do not impede pedestrians from using the sidewalk. Due to the large parking
lots which are dedicated to our location and our proactive measures against loitering, we do not foresee
having any negative effect on pedestrian traffic.
Responding to Complaints
Authentic Fresno takes complaints seriously. While we plan to take every measure to prevent any
sources of complaints, if there are ever any complaints against Authentic Fresno, we will promptly and
proactively resolve the matter. Authentic Fresno has adopted a comprehensive complaint resolution
procedure. Authentic Fresno’s complaint-resolution procedure will be as follows: (i) receive and record
the complaint; (ii) investigate the complaint; (iii) record the result of the investigation and any resulting
actions; (iv) follow up with and respond to the individual who made the complaint; and (v) use the
information to improve existing procedures. Shryne has incorporated this model across all its locations
with great success.
i. Receiving the Complaint
Authentic Fresno will provide multiple channels for receiving complaints, including a telephone number,
a Community Liaison (DeRon Waller), an email address, physical mail, personal visits, and social media
platforms. Such contact information will be posted on the front door of the facility so that people can
easily contact us with any issues. Authentic Fresno will train employees in active listening. Employees
will respond to complaints in a professional and compassionate demeanor. They will communicate
to the person registering the complaint that Authentic Fresno takes all complaints seriously. As soon
as Authentic Fresno receives a complaint, it will promptly enter the complaint into the complaint log
which is maintained for at least 7 years and also emailed to the General Manager and Co-Managers. An
investigation will also commence immediately.
ii. Investigating the Complaint
The General Manager will be responsible for investigating all complaints. If the General Manager
is unavailable, a Co-Manager will be equipped to obtain the appropriate information. Authentic
Fresno will investigate complaints in a systematic fashion. Authentic Fresno has developed complaint
investigation worksheets for investigating complaints. Specific complaint investigation forms include
noise, light, odor, litter, and traffic and require the General Manager or Co-Manager to request and
record the following information during the complaint intake:
Noise
Details include: Date, type, and intensity of the noise; where the complainant was located
when they heard the noise; and where on the premises the complainant believed the noise
was coming from.
Light Details include: Time the light was observed; which fixture produced the nuisance light; and
where the complainant was located when the light was observed.
iii. Recording the Results
The General Manager will document the conclusion of their investigation and recommendations of
corrective actions. In addition, Authentic Fresno will record any corrective action taken in response to
the complaint in its complaint log. Authentic Fresno will maintain a file of all complaints and outcomes
in the course of its recordkeeping. The documentation will be clear enough that anybody reviewing
the records can determine that a clear, well-reasoned, and diligent effort to resolve the complaint was
undertaken. Records relating to complaints will be maintained for at least seven years.
iv. Following Up with Complainant
The General Manager will notify the complainant of the outcome of the investigation. If the complaint
cannot be corroborated, the General Manager will notify the complainant the complaint was investigated
and that no definite source was found. The General Manager will encourage the complainant to notify
Authentic Fresno in the future if they observe unacceptable light, noise, odor, litter or traffic. The
General Manger will also emphasize that notification should be made as soon as possible to enable
Authentic Fresno to investigate and resolve the problem. At no point will any employee of Authentic
Fresno downplay or trivialize the complaint even if the source of the complaint cannot be verified.
Every employee will be taught during its training course to be empathetic to every person making a
complaint and to take every complaint very seriously.
v. Taking Corrective Action
If a complaint is substantiated, Shryne will implement a corrective action plan to ensure the conduct
does not occur again. Corrective action may include, but is not limited to, revising policies and
procedures, fixing lighting, HVAC or other equipment, training and retraining staff, and utilizing third-
party experts.
3.2. Nuisance Management
Outreach and Feedback
Authentic Fresno’s neighborhood compatibility starts with neighborhood outreach. As mentioned
previously, Authentic Fresno hosted a virtual open house in September and will host another open house
and job fair prior to its opening to provide the community an opportunity to express any concerns they
have about our business and its impact on the surrounding community. We will hand out educational
materials about our company and stress our commitment to being a thoughtful and giving member of the
community.
To mitigate nuisances on an ongoing basis, Authentic Fresno will provide multiple channels for giving
feedback. Authentic Fresno will maintain a Community Liaison (DeRon Waller), a telephone number,
on-site customer service employees, social media platforms, and a website for receiving community
feedback. All of this information will be posted on the front door entrance. Authentic Fresno’s aim is
to make neighbors feel comfortable enough to approach us with any feedback or concerns. Authentic
Fresno will expeditiously attend to complaints as detailed in its complaint procedure. Authentic Fresno’s
intention is to avoid, address, and resolve complaints without any city intervention.
Authentic Fresno will also mitigate nuisances through its relationship with police. Prior to our opening,
the Fresno Police will be invited to tour the facility and provide any feedback on our security systems.
We will maintain open lines of communication with law enforcement and city officials. Authentic
Fresno hopes to earn the city’s trust that it will properly respond to neighborhood concerns so that
complaints do not escalate into investigations.
As we have at our other locations, Authentic Fresno will proactively cooperate with the Fresno Police if
they are investigating a crime which occurred near our facility which we may have video recordings or
other pertinent information about. Authentic Fresno will provide all video footage as requested by the
Fresno Police regardless of whether the incident directly involves Authentic Fresno or its customers or
employees.
Finally, Authentic Fresno will continue to host annual local stakeholder meetings to address community
concerns and to receive stakeholder feedback. Stakeholders will include residential neighbors,
neighboring businesses, law enforcement, city officials, non-profits, addiction treatment professionals,
religious institutions, and other interested parties. The stakeholder meetings will present opportunities
for collaboration and to adjust operations to meet community expectations.
Good Neighbor Policy
See below, a DRAFT Authentic Fresno Good Neighbor Policy which will be posted at our store and be
available to our customers. This is a working draft that is being developed through the input we received
during our open house and our past experiences at our other retail locations. As we continue to hold
more open houses and have discussions with the community, this Good Neighbor Policy will be further
revised to reflect continuous feedback from the community.
Residents living and working in the neighborhood have the right to enjoy a reasonable level of peace
and quiet and our Good Neighbor Policy and complaint response procedures outlined above evidence
our commitment to this belief. The Good Neighbor Policy prohibits consumption of drugs or alcohol on
the premise, loitering, littering, double-parking and requires that all employees take extra care to prevent
noise, odor and lighting which may negatively impact the neighbors around us.
Our Good Neighbor Policy will dictate how customers should act on and around the premises.
Displaying a courteous and respectful attitude always makes for better neighbor relations and a more
positive experience for all community members. Disorderly conduct, public consumption of cannabis,
rowdiness, loud music, or loitering is not consistent with our values. Those customers found in violation
will not be permitted to return to the dispensary. Our security and management will make sure
customers adhere to the Good Neighbor Policy. We will respond to complaints from neighbors when
behavior occurs around the premises that is inconsistent with Good Neighbor Policy.
Premises Management
Authentic Fresno will institute major renovations to our proposed location’s facade, signage, painting,
roof work, parking lot, and landscaping so that the building looks brand new. Authentic Fresno believes
the money spent on these types of renovations are well spent. A well maintained property will make the
store more inviting and reduce the likelihood of loitering, vandalism or illegal activities around the store.
Authentic Fresno’s policies and procedures will provide for the restoration of any area defaced
by graffiti either by painting over the area with a color matching the original design scheme or by
removing the graffiti within 48 hours of the occurrence pursuant to FMC Article 27 § 15-2739(M).
Security guards and employees will routinely check for graffiti and report any instances discovered to
management, who will arrange for prompt repainting or removal.
The security guards will take primary responsibility for on-site patrol, including all areas of the premises
and the parking lot. In addition, staff members will be trained to report any incidents or circumstances
that conflict with company best practices. We will display prominent, visible signage to deter visitors
from loitering or consuming intoxicating substances, such as alcohol and cannabis, on or near its
premises. Specifically, Authentic Fresno will post “No Loitering, Public Drinking, or Public Smoking/
Consumption of Cannabis” signs both inside and outside of the premises. Moreover, Authentic Fresno
will prohibit individuals from remaining on its premises if they are not engaging in an activity expressly
related to its retail operations.
All Authentic Fresno staff will be responsible for the internal and external appearance of its business,
both in terms of physical presentation and brand image. As noted in Section 3.1, staff will ensure
that litter around the premises is picked up at the beginning and end of each day. Authentic Fresno
employees will also sweep the area immediately in front of the storefront. Authentic Fresno will also
utilize property management to ensure the interior and exterior is cleaned daily. Authentic Fresno takes
pride in its professional reputation and in retaining the enduring goodwill of neighboring tenants and
property owners.
3.3. Odor Mitigation Practices
Because no packaging or other manufacturing of cannabis will be conducted at this site, odor will not
affect the surrounding area as long as all of our odor mitigation practices are followed.
Standard Operating Procedures to Prevent Odor
Authentic Fresno’s employees are required to check all inventory of cannabis products to ensure that
all packages are properly sealed and packaged so that they do not emanate any odors. Because oils,
edibles and other manufactured goods do not emanate any cannabis odor, employees will be trained to
pay special attention to the packaging of raw flower and pre-roll flower to ensure they do not have any
damage or openings and no odor is emanating from them.
Additionally, employees will be required to check that all windows and doors (other than the front door
which remains unlocked during operations) are properly locked, closed and sealed. The HVAC system,
negative air pressure, and the carbon filtration system, which are described in Section 3.5 below, will
ensure that all air passes through the carbon filtration system and only through the roof outlets.
Security guards and our employees will also make sure that people are not consuming any cannabis
products within the store or within the general area of our store. Signs will be posted throughout our store
that consumption of cannabis on our property is prohibited and against the law. Our security guards will
also conduct perimeter walks to prevent loiterers from consuming cannabis on our parking lot or in the area
around our parking lot. By preventing loiterers and customers from consuming cannabis on or around our
facility, we will prevent a common source of cannabis odor which plagues other cannabis dispensaries.
Employee Odor Detection System
In addition to the preventative practices described previously, Authentic Fresno will train employees
on how to detect, prevent, and remediate odor outside its facility. Employees will also be aware of
all corrective options available. Employees who detect any odors or are made aware of any odors are
trained to do the following:
• Investigate the likely source of the odor.
• Utilize on site management practices to resolve the odor event.
• Take steps to reduce the source of objectionable odors.
• Determine if the odor traveled offsite by surveying the perimeter and making observations of
existing wind patterns.
• Document the event for further operational review.
An Odor Detection Form (ODF) shall be provided to those who suspect objectionable odors emanating
from inside the facility. ODFs are available per request, on-site. We shall maintain records of all odor
detection notifications and/or complaints that will include the remediation measures employed. The
records shall be made available to the BCC, City, or the general public on request. The form is below:
In addition to odor mitigation practices, our odor control devices and techniques described in Section
3.5 and the fact that our location is a standalone property with our own parking lots surrounding the
premises without any residences or businesses nearby should reduce the risk of any odor affecting the
community.
3.4. Potential Sources of Odor
Cannabis flower and cannabis flower in pre-rolls are the only products which we will carry at our
facilities which will have the potential to have any odor since the edibles, oils, tinctures and other
products do not emanate any smell. The potential sources for odor from these products include the
inventory room, sales room, and any safe in which cannabis goods are stored. As mentioned in Section
3.3, packages will be checked daily to ensure that they are properly sealed and packaged so that they are
not emanating any smell.
Authentic Fresno will not allow raw flower to be packaged on-site which will substantially reduce the
risk of any odors emanating in the area. Loiterers and customers will also be prevented from smoking or
otherwise consuming any cannabis products on or around the facility, which will also reduce the likelihood
of any odors. Any customers who are caught consuming cannabis on or near the facility will be prevented
from shopping at our store again. Our security guards will also surveil the parking lot area to prevent
customers from consuming any cannabis products in their cars or otherwise on or near the facility.
When inventory shipments are received and are being taken into the inventory room or storage room,
Authentic Fresno will utilize odor-neutralizing materials such as enzymatic catalysts which can degrade
odorous compounds. These materials will be applied to surface areas throughout the store to reduce the
risk of any odors.
In summary, the raw flower and the pre-rolls we sell on the sales floor and which we store in our
inventory rooms are the main potential sources of cannabis odor. The odor mitigation practices described
in Section 3.3 and the devices and techniques described in Section 3.5, shall prevent any such potential
sources of odor from causing odors inside or outside of the store.
3.5. Odor Control Devices and Techniques
Authentic Fresno’s odor control plan ensures odors from cannabis are not detectable beyond the licensed
premises. The first step of Authentic Fresno’s air quality management and odor mitigation plan will be
to employ adequate heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (“HVAC”) systems as required by FMC
Article 33 § 9-3309(j). Authentic Fresno will work with licensed engineers to assess and improve any
existing HVAC system at the proposed location to ensure superior air quality and mitigate any odors that
result from the proposed retail space.
Authentic Fresno will replace and maintain the highest quality carbon filters to provide clean air for all
employees and consumers. In addition to the HVAC system, Authentic Fresno will engage with a local
mechanical engineering firm to assess the facility, identify opportunities for improvement, and increase
air quality and odor capture. Improvements may include but will not be limited to: (i) air handler
selection so outside air can be conditioned and brought into the space without recirculation of smell into
the occupied environment; (ii) dedicated systems for each area of the facility that engages in a different
retail practice; (iii) air filtration and purification so exhaust and supply air does not negatively impact
neighbors or customers; and (iv) the use of carbon air filters or scrubbers.
Air Pressure
Authentic Fresno’s facility will be kept under negative pressure by means of an exhaust system with
carbon filters for odor mitigation so that the odors generated inside the business will not be detectable
on the outside of the business or at any of the properties in the immediate surrounding area. The exhaust
discharge shall be designed with a high velocity outlet to eject the exhaust up and away from any
neighbors or pedestrian traffic.
Carbon Filters
We believe that the best filtration system for cannabis facilities is carbon filtration. The various
inventory, retail and storage areas will all be separated from other areas, allowing for odor control
methods to be specific to the activity being performed. The carbon-filtered ventilation will utilize the
Koch Filter DuraPure, which is used in cigar lounges, airport facilities, chemical plants and other
businesses which require a high-powered air filtration system. The DuraPURE utilizes premium grade
granular 60% activated carbon and its unique V-shaped frame holds up to 26 pounds of activated carbon.
Portable, carbon-filtered recirculating Can-Lite 14” x 40” (SKU: 358598) fans will further minimize or
eliminate odors in the cultivation, storage and vault rooms and retail area, and will be placed near access
points such as doors.
The combination of carbon exhaust air filtration and building pressure control represent the current best
available technology.
Air Design Technique
The facility shall have no operable windows and will be kept locked and sealed at all times. All doors
shall be sealed with proper weather stripping, keeping circulating and filtered air inside the facility. As
mentioned previously, our employees will be trained to confirm that all doors and windows are properly
closed, locked, and sealed.
Additionally, our Standard Operating Procedures require that employees check our products on a
daily basis to ensure they are properly sealed and not emanating any odors. Our security guards and
employees also vigilantly check for any consumption in the parking lot or near the vicinity of our store.
Our employees are also trained to detect any odors outside of the facility and to track the source of any
odors which are detectable outside. Our professional HVAC specialists are engaged if we are not able
to get rid of the odor within 24 hours. These techniques and our comprehensive odor mitigation system
have successfully kept all our other retail locations free of cannabis odor.
3.6. Staff Odor Training and System Maintenance
Staff Odor Training
As mentioned previously, Authentic Fresno’s employees are trained as follows to minimize the
likelihood that any odor is detectable outside of our store:
• Employees are required to check every piece of inventory of cannabis products on a daily basis to
ensure that all packages are properly sealed and packaged so that they do not emanate any odors.
Employees are trained to pay special attention to the packaging of raw flower and pre-roll flower to
ensure they do not have any damage or openings and no odor is emanating from them.
• Employees are required to check that all windows and doors (other than the front door which
remains unlocked during operations) are properly locked, closed and sealed. The HVAC system,
negative air pressure, and the carbon filtration system, which were described in Section 3.5
previously, will ensure that all air passes through the carbon filtration system and only through the
roof outlets.
• Employees will also work with our security guards to make sure that people are not consuming any
cannabis products within the store or within the general area of our store.
• Employees will be trained on how to detect, prevent, and remediate odor outside its facility.
Employees who detect any odors or are made aware of any odors are trained to do the following:
• Investigate the likely source of the odor.
• Utilize on site management practices to resolve the odor event.
• Take steps to reduce the source of objectionable odors.
• Determine if the odor traveled offsite by surveying the perimeter and making observations of
tracking; (iii) documentation and notification of malfunctions; (iv) scheduled and performed training
sessions; and (v) monitoring of administrative and engineering controls. Odor mitigation records will be
made available to the City of Fresno and the Bureau of Cannabis Control upon request.
3.7. Waste Management Plan
Non-Cannabis Waste
Authentic Fresno will engage Fresno’s Department of
Public Utilities – Trash Disposal & Recycling Division
for its non-cannabis trash and recycling needs. Authentic
Fresno strives to recycle 70-75% of all of its waste
produced. Packaging materials for cannabis products which
are delivered to our store from distribution vehicles is
our largest source of waste, and we will recycle all such
cardboard boxes and packaging materials at this store as we
have at our other stores. Shoppers will also receive
off their next purchase for bringing in their shopping bags which we also recycle. Non-cannabis waste
will be disposed of in the trash bin on the northeastern corner of the property.
Cannabis Waste
Authentic Fresno will dispose of cannabis waste in a manner that ensures it is unusable and not diverted.
Authentic Fresno strives to prevent introduction of defective and/or unsafe cannabis in the marketplace.
Thus, safe and secure cannabis waste disposal will be a high priority.
Cannabis Disposal Locations
The cannabis waste will be kept inside a sealed and locked 20-gallon secure polyethylene container in
the limited access section of the inventory room which will be locked until the container is picked up by
our third party vendor Cannabis Waste Solutions19
19 https://cannabis-waste.com/about/
Cannabis Goods Subject to Disposal
The destruction of cannabis goods prior to disposal will be done in accordance with 16 CCR § 5054 and
recorded on video. Cannabis and cannabis products will be disposed of in accordance with all applicable
waste management laws, including but not limited to, Division 30 of California’s Public Resources
Code. In order to properly dispose of cannabis and cannabis products, the processes laid out in 16 CCR
§ 5054(d) will be followed. Those actions include, at a minimum, removing or separating the cannabis
goods from any packaging, or container, and rending it unrecognizable and unusable. Vape cartridges
will also be made unusable in accordance with 16 CCR § 5054.
The following cannabis products will be disposed of according to our Standard Operating Procedures:
• Any returned type of cannabis flower or cannabis product including but not limited to edibles, pre-
rolls, vape cartridges and topicals by a customer.
• Any empty or damaged packaging that is used to contain cannabis goods.
• Recycled vape cartridges.
• Cannabis goods that have passed their expiration date.
• Cannabis goods that fell onto the floor or have been otherwise contaminated.
• Any cannabis good abandoned on the premises (left behind by a customer) may not be re-sold and
must be disposed of as cannabis waste.
Methods of Destroying Cannabis Waste
Cannabis goods intended for disposal will be destroyed, at a minimum, by removing the goods from
any packaging or container and rending them unrecognizable and unusable. Whenever practicable,
Authentic Fresno will use a destruction method that is environmentally friendly and will result in
compostable cannabis waste. For example, cannabis flower will be rendered unusable by grinding the
flower and incorporating it with yard waste so that the resulting mixture is at least 50% non-cannabis
waste by volume. At the time of pickup Cannabis Waste Solutions will spray a proprietary solution
on the cannabis waste to further rend the cannabis unusable. The non-toxic rending fluid is added to
saturate the biomass material. This fluid changes the color, taste, and texture of the biomass. It alters the
chemical composition of the biomass. The active ingredients are both water and solvent soluble making
any re-extraction impossible.
Waste Records
Authentic Fresno will account for destroyed cannabis goods in METRC and IndicaOnline. Authentic
Fresno will record the following within 24 hours of each cannabis waste destruction or disposal:
(i) name and type of cannabis goods; (ii) UID of cannabis goods; (iii) amount of cannabis goods,
by weight or count; (iv) date and time of destruction or disposal; (v) name of employee performing
destruction or disposal; (vi) reason for destruction and disposal; and (vii) entity disposing of the
cannabis waste. Authentic Fresno will maintain cannabis waste destruction and disposal records for at
least seven years per Authentic Fresno’s recordkeeping procedures as pursuant to 16 CCR § 5037(a)(7).
Authentic Fresno’s waste management vendor, Cannabis Waste Solutions, will pick up the secure
containers every week from Authentic Fresno’s secure inventory room and will transport it into its
facilities, where waste will be either recycled into energy for California’s power grid or made into
various “new-gen” materials for the construction industry. Authentic Fresno will obtain documentation
from the waste facility evidencing the date and time of the facility’s receipt of the cannabis waste and
will maintain this documentation for at least seven years in compliance with 16 CCR § 5037(a)(7). See
below Cannabis Waste Solutions Recycle Back Program which all of Shryne’s stores are a part of.
Waste Security
Authentic Fresno’s Director of Compliance will be responsible for waste management and will record
on digital video all instances when cannabis product is being destroyed. All cannabis waste will be
disposed of in the secure waste receptacle located in the limited-access area of the inventory room.
Before disposing of the cannabis, the batch number and product information from which the cannabis
waste came from must be noted in the Retail Cannabis Disposal Log along with other pertinent
information. A co-manager or General Manager must review and initial the Retail Cannabis Disposal
Log prior to disposition.
After rendering the cannabis unusable as described below, the Director of Compliance and another
employee will lock the cannabis waste into a 20-gallon secure polyethylene
container provided by Cannabis Waste Solutions which will be further
locked in the limited access section of the inventory room. The Director of
Compliance and the General Manager will be the only employees with keys
to the waste container. Only authorized employees can access the limited-
access room with an electronic card. Cannabis waste will not be disposed
of in the dumpster located on the property. Instead, Authentic Fresno will
utilize Cannabis Waste Solutions, a licensed cannabis waste removal
service.
PROPOSED CANNABIS RETAIL STORE – FRESNO, CA 20-2314 – Page 1
4248 W ASHLAN AVE FIRE SAFETY PLAN November 18, 2020
INTRODUCTION
Authentic 559 LLC dba Authentic Fresno is planning to develop a retail store
commercial cannabis business in Fresno, CA and they have retained The Fire
Consultants, Inc. (TFC) to evaluate the project and develop a fire safety plan to identify
applicable fire protection criteria for the facility. This report will identify the major
applicable fire protection requirements pertaining to the facility and will serve as the
basis of discussion between design team members and the appropriate authorities
(Fresno Police Department, Fresno Fire Department, Fresno City Manager, etc.)
regarding these elements.
The major design objectives are to protect the occupants and inventory from a potential
fire and achieve and maintain compliance with the applicable codes. This report does
not provide requirements from the insurer but incorporates these where they have been
provided to us by the operator.
APPLICABLE CODES
The project will be subject to the requirements of the 2019 California Building Code
(CBC) and California Fire Code (CFC) with City of Fresno amendments, and City of
Fresno Administrative Regulations for Commercial Cannabis Business.
BUILDING DESCRIPTION
The Authentic Fresno retail store will be approximately 7,800 square feet, will occupy an
existing building built in 2000 and will have a layout as shown in Section 4.3. The City-
approved floor plan and building to be occupied will be determined later, after City
approval of the proposed project. The building will include approximately 2,500 SF
front-of house (public access) and the rest will be back-of-house (employee only).
OVERVIEW
The Authentic Fresno retail store is classified as Mercantile Group M per the Building
Code and will include both front-of-house areas and back-of-house areas. The front-of-
house areas will include an entry check-in lobby and retail sales and display area. The
back of house area will include the secured inventory room, break area, vault, offices,
security offices, restrooms, deliveries, and Loading/Unloading areas. The retail store
will sell a variety of cannabis products, including flower, pre-rolls, vapor products,
edibles, capsules, topicals, tinctures, concentrates and other accessories. The products
will come pre-packaged from distributors; the retail store will not undertake any
packaging in the store. The retail store will not include any operations related to
cannabis growing, processing, or extraction.
PROPOSED CANNABIS RETAIL STORE – FRESNO, CA 20-2314 – Page 2
4248 W ASHLAN AVE FIRE SAFETY PLAN November 18, 2020
SAFETY PLAN
The City of Fresno requires a Safety Plan for cannabis retail stores. This document is
provided to address City requirements for a Safety Plan for the Authentic Fresno
cannabis retail store at 4248 W Ashlan Ave.
4.1 SAFETY PLAN PREPARED BY A PROFESSIONAL FIRE PREVENTION AND
SUPPRESSION CONSULTANT
The Safety Plan and this summary of the Safety Plan were both prepared by The Fire
Consultants, Inc. The Fire Consultants, Inc. is a fire protection engineering and
consulting firm with widespread experience conducting fire protection and life safety
assessments, developing fire protection reports and code compliance assessments, as
well as, designing fire alarm, sprinkler and special suppression systems and reviewing
those designs by others. Our firm has consulted on thousands of projects in multiple
states, including California, Oregon and Washington. The main author of the Safety
Plan and this summary of the Safety Plan is Mr. John Stauder, P.E., who is a licensed
professional engineer, holding both Mechanical Engineering (M 33333) and Fire
Protection Engineering (FP 1668) licenses in California. Mr. Stauder is also licensed in
the states of Arizona, Oregon and Washington.
4.2 ACCIDENT AND INCIDENT REPORTING PROCEDURES
According to Authentic Fresno’s Employee Manual, an accident or incident is an
unplanned occurrence that resulted or could have resulted in injury to people or damage
to property, equipment or the environment. Even minor injuries such as cuts or sprains
are considered accidents and “near misses” of even these “minor” accidents are also
considered incidents.
Upon any accident or incident, an employee who experiences or witnesses an accident
or who is initially told of the incident or accident by a customer must immediately report
the accident or incident to one of the Co-Managers or the General Manager. The Co-
Manager or General Manager will immediately assess whether the police, paramedics,
fire department or any other authority should be contacted. The Co-Manager or
General Manager will also determine whether medical treatment is required for any
employee, customer or independent contractor. If appropriate, the Co-Manager or
General Manager will also secure the scene to ensure the source of the accident or
incident does not cause another accident or incident before the source is remediated.
Once the proper authorities have been contacted, medical treatment applied and the
area of the incident or accident is secured, the employee who witnessed the accident or
incident will assist a Co-Manager or the General Manager in filling out the
accident/incident report below. The form will have the “employee” section and the
“Manager” section so that a record of the incident/accident’s firsthand account is
documented. The “Manager” section ensures that management follows up with this
PROPOSED CANNABIS RETAIL STORE – FRESNO, CA 20-2314 – Page 6
4248 W ASHLAN AVE FIRE SAFETY PLAN November 18, 2020
The occupant load for the uses of the spaces in the retail store is tabulated below per
CBC Table 1004.5.
Use of Space
Occupant
Load Factor
(sq ft/person)
Space
Approx.
Area
(sq ft)
Occupant
Load
(persons)
Check-in Lobby 660 44Unconcentrated
Assembly 15 net Break Room 218 15
Mercantile 60 gross Sales and Display Area 1888 32
Secured Inventory Room 846 3
Retail Counters 1112 4
Deliveries 790 3
Loading/Unloading (1) 42 1
Storage, Stock,
Shipping Areas 300 gross
Loading/Unloading (2) 80 1
Office (1)144 1
Office (2)144 1
Security Office 250 2
Restroom (1)70 1
Restroom (2)70 1
Business Areas 150 gross
Circulation 982 7
Total 116
The retail store is separated into front-of-house areas and back-of-house areas. The
retail store layout provides separate exiting from each area without passing through the
other area. The occupant load for the public-accessed front-of-house area is 76
(including lobby and Retail area), and the occupant load for the back-of-house area is
40. The occupant load for front of the house area is more than 50 occupants, requiring
two exits.
The egress path of travel limitations (feet) for the occupancy within the retail store is
provided below per CBC Chapter 10 for sprinkler protected buildings, as the existing
building is sprinkler protected. This is required to be measured along the natural path of
PROPOSED CANNABIS RETAIL STORE – FRESNO, CA 20-2314 – Page 7
4248 W ASHLAN AVE FIRE SAFETY PLAN November 18, 2020
travel. The proposed layout is within these travel distances for sprinklered buildings, as
shown in Figure 1.
Occupancy Common Path of
Travel Exit Access Travel Dead End Length
Group M
(Sprinklered)75 250 50
Where the occupant load will exceed 49, or where the common path limitation is
exceeded, a minimum of two exits are required per CBC Table 1006.2.1. These exits
are required to be separated by a minimum of one-third the area longest diagonal of the
area served for sprinkler protected buildings. The overall retail store facility will contain
six separate exits, to meet the required separation; one at the front entry, one from the
retail space and four at the rear, back-of-house area as shown in Figure 1. Authentic
Fresno will install listed panic hardware on the exterior exit doors to meet CBC
1010.1.10 and UL 305.
CBC 1010.1.9 requires all egress doors to be readily openable from the egress side at
all times, requiring only one operation to open the door, without the use of a key or
special knowledge or effort, except in specific situations. The Ordinance Article 33 of
the Fresno City Code for Commercial Cannabis Business requires the retail area
access door be locked at all times with buzz-in access through the
electronic/mechanical door from lobby. This door shall be unlocked and readily
openable from egress side (retail side), all times. The main door is allowed to be
provided with a locking device on the egress side, provided the following requirements
are met:
a. The locking device is readily distinguishable as locked, and
b. A readily visible durable sign is posted on the egress side of the door (inside) on or
adjacent to the door, stating “THIS DOOR TO REMAIN UNLOCKED WHEN THIS
SPACE IS OCCUPIED” in 1-inch black letters on a contrasting background.
Certain egress doors in the retail store will be provided with card readers to control
access into the retail store, back-of-house area, and cannabis goods storage and
inventory rooms, as noted on the sketch in Figure 2. This is to meet Article 33 of the
Fresno City Code for Commercial Cannabis Business. These doors will be arranged to
meet the following provisions per CBC Section 1010.1.9.10 to allow for free egress:
a. The door hardware that is affixed to the door leaf has an obvious method of
operation that is readily operated under all lighting conditions
b. The door hardware is capable of being operated with one hand and does not
require more than one operation for unlatching
c. Operation of the door hardware directly interrupts the power to the electric lock
and unlocks the door immediately
d. Loss of power to the electric locking system automatically unlocks the door
e. Operation of the panic hardware releases the lock
f. The locking system units are listed in accordance with UL 294
The exit path from the occupied spaces in the rooms or through corridors will need to be
a minimum unobstructed width of 36 inches where serving less than 50 occupants; the
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4248 W ASHLAN AVE FIRE SAFETY PLAN November 18, 2020
width increases to 44 inches if serving 50 or more occupants per CBC Table 1020.2.
The aisles are required to meet these widths, and the aisle accessways (if not required
to be accessible) are required to be at least 30 inches wide per CBC Section 1018.3
and 1018.4. As discussed above, the retail store is separated into a front-of-house area
and a back-of-house area. Since the public areas has more than 50 occupants, two
exits should be provided. Two exits will be provided directly from front of house areas
and separate exits will be provided for back of house area. The exit path is allowed to
pass through intervening rooms that are accessory to one another, provided that the
required width is met, and a discernable path of egress travel is provided per CBC
1016.2.
Exit signs are required for rooms where two exits are required, per CBC Section 1013.
The facility will be provided with illuminated exit signs to facilitate egress. Emergency
lighting will be provided for the means of egress in the facility to meet CBC Section
1008. The facility will be provided with emergency access and emergency evacuation
plans to meet state and local fire standards.
The facility will not employ any devices that emit any medium such as smoke or fog that
could obscure the means of egress in the building as prohibited per CFC Section 316.5.
4.4 FIRE EXTINGUISHERS AND OTHER FIRE SUPPRESSION EQUIPMENT
LOCATION
Sprinklers
The existing building includes automatic sprinkler system. The retail store facility shall
maintain the existing automatic sprinkler system, as this greatly enhances life safety,
enables code compliance more easily and provides property protection and can reduce
business interruption in case of a fire.
The secured cannabis goods storage and inventories will include storage of the
products on racks or shelves in cardboard packaging. The retail display area will
contain products in display cases. The inventory is anticipated to include up to a Class
IV commodity per the CFC and NFPA 13, Standard for the Installation of Sprinkler
Systems, containing primarily the cannabis products in cardboard and plastic
packaging. This is not considered a high-hazard commodity such as flammable liquids
or rubber tires or Group A plastics. The product stacking on the display shelving and
storage shelving will need to be maintained where the top of storage is no higher than
12 feet above the floor or at least 18 inches below the ceiling sprinklers (subject to
NFPA 13 requirements). The inventory is not considered a high-hazard commodity and
therefore should not be classified as high-piled combustible storage per the CFC if the
top of the storage is maintained under 12 feet.
Subject to the capability of the existing water supply, fire main and existing sprinkler
system design, the existing automatic sprinkler system can be utilized to protect the
new use and occupancy of the retail store. The display and storage areas may be up to
10 feet in height or at least 18 inches below the ceiling sprinklers (subject to NFPA 13
requirements) and will require protection as Ordinary Hazard Group II (OH2) per NFPA
PROPOSED CANNABIS RETAIL STORE – FRESNO, CA 20-2314 – Page 9
4248 W ASHLAN AVE FIRE SAFETY PLAN November 18, 2020
13 Table 13.2.1. The storage may contain up to 15% unexpanded plastic by weight or
25% by volume. If the existing sprinkler system can’t meet OH2 design criteria, the
storage arrangement will require modification to meet the available sprinkler system
limitations and NFPA 13 requirements.
Storage of any plastics or foams such as shipping supplies will need to be maintained
under 6 feet to avoid classification as high-piled combustible storage and be maintained
under 5 feet in order to be protected as Ordinary Hazard Group 2 per NFPA 13 Table
13.2.1.
As the design progresses, the existing sprinkler system design will need to be evaluated
with a licensed sprinkler contractor (C-16 Contractor). The sprinkler system design
shall be in accordance with NFPA 13, Standard for the Installation of Sprinkler Systems
and California Building and Fire Code and City of Fresno amendments. The sprinkler
system will need to be inspected, tested, and maintained in accordance with the
California amended version of NFPA 25, Standard for the Inspection, Testing, and
Maintenance of Water-Based Fire Protection Systems.
Fire Alarm
Based on discussion with the Owner/operator, we understand that the existing retail
store location is provided with a fire alarm system. The existing fire alarm including
initiation devices and occupant notification shall be maintained once the project is
awarded to Authentic Fresno. Typically, the fire alarm will consist of combination smoke
/ carbon monoxide / heat detection and sprinkler waterflow connected to a fire alarm
control panel, and that initiation of such devices will automatically notify emergency
responders and employees and public customers.
Since an automatic sprinkler system is provided, the facility shall include at least one
exterior approved audible device, activated by sprinkler water flow as required by CBC
Section 903.4.2. Upon actuation of the automatic sprinkler system, the fire alarm
notification appliances throughout the facility will activate. The fire alarm system will
also be required to monitor the sprinkler system.
The fire alarm system will need to be installed, inspected, tested, and maintained in
accordance with NFPA 72, National Fire Alarm and Signaling Code and California Fire
Code and Title 19.
PROPOSED CANNABIS RETAIL STORE – FRESNO, CA 20-2314 – Page 10
4248 W ASHLAN AVE FIRE SAFETY PLAN November 18, 2020
Fire Extinguishers
The retail store is anticipated to contain Class A fire hazards, which are ordinary
combustibles such as paper and wood, and Class C fire hazards, which are electrical
fires. The primary hazard in the facility is anticipated to be Class A fire hazards.
The fire extinguishers in the facility are required to be rated at a minimum 2A:10B:C for
the hazards in the building and spaced up to 75 feet travel distance per CBC Table
906.3(1).
The fire extinguishers are required to be located in conspicuous locations per CFC
Section 906, either mounted on brackets or inside fire extinguisher cabinets, where they
will be readily accessible and immediately available for use, with the top no more than 5
feet above the floor. See diagram below for the proposed locations of fire extinguishers
in the retail store. The fire extinguishers will need to be installed and maintained in
accordance with CFC Section 906.2 and California Code of Regulations, Title 19,
Division 1, Chapter 3.
Exact fire extinguisher locations will be provided to meet 2019 California Building and
Fire Code Section 906 as part of the tenant improvement permit submittal. The
possible location of devices for fire alarm system and fire alarm control panel is
provided below. The location of manual pull station shall be confirmed with AHJ.
The possible location of devices for fire alarm system and fire alarm control panel is
provided in the diagram below, and contemplates approximately:
[5] Fire extinguishers being located at Deliveries, Counters, Retail and Secured
Inventory
[25] Smoke and Carbon Dioxide Detectors being placed in all rooms
[20] Horn and Strobe being placed in all rooms
[1] Knox Box being located at main entrance
PROPOSED CANNABIS RETAIL STORE – FRESNO, CA 20-2314 – Page 14
4248 W ASHLAN AVE FIRE SAFETY PLAN November 18, 2020
In addition to the Fire and Medical Emergency Policies and Training mentioned above,
Authentic Fresno has the following policies and procedures to maintain a safe working
environment.
First Aid Log
Any injury or illness that is reported to a first-aid facility or medical facility must be
recorded on a First-Aid Log form. This includes non-occupational cases and injuries, or
illnesses treated that involve vendors, suppliers, Contractors/Subcontractors, client
personnel, and any other third party. First-Aid Logs or any portion of a log are not for
general distribution. Requests for such information shall be processed by the human
resource manager/supervisor.
First Aid Kits
First aid supplies shall be easily accessible when required. First-aid kits and required
contents shall be maintained in a serviceable condition. Unit-type kits shall have all
items in the first-aid kit individually wrapped, sealed, and packaged in comparable sized
packages. The commercial or cabinet-type kits do not require all items to be individually
wrapped and sealed, but only those which must be kept sterile. Items such as scissors,
tweezers, tubes of ointments with caps, or rolls of adhesive tape, need not be
individually wrapped, sealed, or disposed of after a single use or application.
A roster, denoting the telephone numbers and addresses of doctors, hospitals and
ambulance services available to the Authentic Fresno retail store, shall be posted at or
near each first-aid station.
Safety Rules for All Employees
It is the policy of Authentic Fresno that everything possible will be done to protect
employees from accidents, injuries and/or occupational disease while on the job. Safety
is a cooperative undertaking requiring an ever-present safety consciousness on the part
of every employee. If an employee is injured, positive action must be taken promptly to
see that the employee receives adequate treatment. No one likes to see a fellow
employee injured by an accident. Therefore, all operations must be planned to prevent
accidents. To carry out this policy, the following rules will apply:
1. All employees shall follow the safe practices and rules contained in this manual
and such other rules and practices communicated on the job. All employees shall
report all unsafe conditions or practices to the proper authority, including the human
resources manager/supervisor.
2. The human resources supervisor/manager shall be responsible for implementing
PROPOSED CANNABIS RETAIL STORE – FRESNO, CA 20-2314 – Page 15
4248 W ASHLAN AVE FIRE SAFETY PLAN November 18, 2020
these policies by insisting that employees observe and obey all rules and regulations
necessary to maintain a safe workplace and safe work habits and practices.
3. Good housekeeping must be practiced at all times in the work area. Clean up all
waste and eliminate any dangers in the work area.
4. Suitable clothing and footwear must be worn at all times, shoes with thin or torn
soles are not permitted.
5. All employees will participate in safety meetings conducted by their supervisor on
a regular basis to continuously provide a safe workplace for all. This is an essential part
of Authentic Fresno’s program for protecting our employees from accidents and illness.
6. Anyone under the influence of intoxicating liquor or drugs, including prescription
drugs which might impair motor skills and judgment, shall not be allowed on the job.
7. Horseplay, scuffling, and other acts which tend to have an adverse influence on
safety or well-being of other employees are prohibited.
8. Work shall be well planned and supervised to avoid injuries in the handling of
heavy materials and while using equipment.
9. No one shall be permitted to work while the employee's ability or alertness is so
impaired by fatigue, illness, or other causes that it might expose the employee or others
to injury.
10. There will be no consumption of alcohol or cannabis on the job.
11. All injuries should be reported to the Supervisor, or 911 so that arrangements
can be made for medical or first aid treatment.
12. When lifting heavy objects, use the large muscles of the leg instead of the
smaller muscles of the back.
13. Do not throw things, especially material and equipment. Dispose of all waste
properly and carefully.
5. SECURITY PLAN
6. LOCATION
6.1. Description of Proposed Location
Overall Property
Our proposed location is 4248 W Ashlan Avenue, Fresno, CA 93722. The assessor’s parcel number is
510-100-48S and is zoned CG. As verified by the Zoning Inquiry Letter submitted with this application,
there are no schools, daycares or youth centers within 800 feet from this location.
The single, standalone building is set back behind 21 parking spots to the south of the building and a
large parking lot flanking the east side of the building so that our popular operation will not create any
parking issues for the surrounding businesses. There are only 3 other buildings within 400 feet of this
location – one is the former Ashlan Inn, which has closed and is not occupied, the second is the 7-Eleven
150 feet away and separated by a large parking lot, and the third is Valero Gas Station on the other
side of Ashlan Avenue. The rest of the surrounding area is undeveloped and vacant lots. This lack of
businesses and residences nearby means that our presence will have minimal effects on our neighbors
and will further reduce the likelihood of traffic or parking becoming an issue at this location. As can be
seen in our site diagram, our location will have two points of ingress and egress off of W Ashlan Ave
which will reduce the likelihood of any bottlenecks being created due to our operations. Customers can
also utilize the sidewalks on both sides of Ashlan Avenue to access the store.
Building
The building is a one story 7,800 square foot building on approximately 1.23 acres which is surrounded
by 94 parking spots. The wooden building is currently occupied by restaurant Yosemite Falls Cafe which
will vacate if we are approved for a cannabis license. Authentic Fresno will institute major renovations
to the building’s facade, signage, painting, roof work, parking lot, and landscaping so that the building
looks brand new, while still keeping it within the character of the surrounding area. As can be seen in
the exterior rendering below and pursuant to FMC Article 33 § 9-3309(d), the store will not have any
cannabis signs, cannabis products or other logos or words which identify that cannabis is sold at the
location. Products will also not be visible from the exterior.
Sensitive Uses
FMC Article 33 § 9-3307(c) requires that all cannabis locations be at least 800 feet away from:
1. A cannabis retail business.
2. A school providing instruction for any grades pre-school through 12 (whether public, private, or
charter, including pre-school, transitional kindergarten, and K-12).
3. A day care center licensed by the state Department of Social Services that is in existence at the
time a complete commercial cannabis business permit application is submitted.
4. A youth center that is in existence at the time a complete commercial cannabis business permit
application is submitted.
We have reviewed the area and there are no sensitive uses within 800 feet of our proposed location. The
closest sensitive uses nearby are as follows:
Compatibility with Designated Zone
Our property is zoned Commercial – General (CG) along with the immediately adjacent properties.
Across Ashlan Ave are also commercially zoned properties (Community Commercial). To the northeast,
the properties are zoned Light Industrial (IL). Our property is far enough from residential zones to not
impact traffic in their area and it is surrounded by open areas that will encourage future developments
which would increase property values and revitalize this underused area of the city.
Being located next to a 7-Eleven and a Valero elicits a sense of convenience where residents won’t have
to go too far out of their way to obtain the items they enjoy. Just down the road to the west are a variety
of restaurants, a grocery store, auto parts store, and a Starbucks.
Additionally, there are no parks within walking distance so residents do not need to be worried about
customers purchasing our product and then immediately consuming it in the vicinity. There is an assisted
living home, Paintbrush Assisted Living, within walking distance which will allow the retirees to have
ready access to medicine.
Proximity to Police and Fire
Our location is less than 3 miles away from police and fire stations. While we hope that they are never
called upon in an emergency situation, their proximity to our store means that they can quickly arrive at
our store to assist.
Fresno Police Department Northwest District
3074 W Shaw Ave, Fresno, CA 93711
6-7 minute drive
Less than 3 miles away
Fresno Fire Station No.12
2874 W Acacia Ave, Fresno, CA 93705
4-6 minute drive
Less than 3 miles away
Site Improvements
As detailed in the floor plan, the property located at 4248 W. Ashlan Ave will be converted from a
restaurant to an expansive retail store. From entry to exit, every surface and facet of our store reflects
quality through attention to detail and clean design. It is our goal to express the quality of our products
through stark lines and colors, well-lit interiors, and cutting-edge technology.
Parking Lot Improvements
The parking lot will be resurfaced as needed and the parking spot lines will be repainted for visibility.
Additionally, landscaping will be redone to include drought resistant plants along the parking lot area.
The existing freestanding sign will be updated to match the renovated façade of the building as discussed
in the following section. This sign will be in compliance with 16 CCR § 5040 and FMC Article 26.
To ensure visitor safety, adequate lighting will be installed throughout the parking lot which will be
aimed downward in order to prevent light spillage onto our neighbors’ properties.
Building Exterior Improvements
With a sound structure already in place, Authentic Fresno will upgrade the exterior façade to create a
modern yet unassuming feel. The existing log-cabin siding will be resurfaced to stucco with a clean
white paint and black accents along windows, door frames, and columns to complement the existing
stone façade which will remain.
A main entrance/exit door will be added to the left side of the protruding room from the rest of the
building. This is to ensure one entrance to be used by the members of the public to enter/exit the
premises in accordance with FMC Article 33 § 9-3310(b)(1)(ii). Having the main entrance to the
left allows for additional space for customers to line up along the front of the building and to wrap at
the existing patio area to the right, and then continue along the back of the building to ensure 6 foot
distancing because of COVID. This will keep customers out of harms was by leaving the parking lot
completely open to vehicles. Please see the render below of the Exterior.
Site Security Improvements
As further discussed in the Security Plan, security cameras will blanket the interior and exterior of the
property in addition to shatter-resistant window film which will be darkened as to ensure general public
cannot see into the interior in compliance with state regulations.
Floor Plan Improvements
Design Team
Authentic Fresno has contracted with the Temeka Group25 of Corona, CA, to work with us in creating
the vision for both our interior and exterior space. With a world-class team of professionals, Temeka
has provided architectural designs, elevations, millwork, and signage to fully develop the concept.
After creating a layout for the interior space, the skilled fabricators at Temeka will then design, build,
and install custom fixtures for a finished look that contributes to the overall customer experience. The
highest standards of craftsmanship go into the millwork and cabinetry which are made in-house at the
Temeka facility.
The Temeka Group means excellence, as is evidenced by their impressive list of clientele, which
includes multiple dispensary stores, The George Jones Museum, Reef Stores, Vans, Amazon, Uber, The
Glen Campbell Museum, Guess, and Quicksilver, as well as designing the gift shops for professional
25 https://www.temekagroup.com
sports teams including the LA Lakers, Dodgers, Galaxy, Anaheim Ducks, and Toronto Maple Leaves.
It is our privilege at Authentic Fresno to work with the Temeka Group and believe their experience and
high standards will be representative of the quality that Authentic Fresno seeks to convey.
Lobby
A glass wall will be installed to separate the lobby from the retail area providing customers a further
glimpse in to their future experience while keeping in mind FMC Article 33 § 9-3310(a)(4)’s
requirement for a separated lobby with buzz-in entry system for added security. The lobby will feature
rotating work from local artists. The door to the right of the reception desk in the entry to the retail floor.
The door to the left of the desk is a one way door for customers exiting the retail floor.
Retail Floor
The existing carpet and tile flooring will be replaced with black-and-white marble-effect epoxy flooring.
As a customer’s eyes take in the unique flooring and travel up the length of the walls they will see the
lit up glass casing counters which house our products for immediate sale and defines our modern design
concept which is the hallmark of our stores. Allowing maximum visibility while keeping the product
pristine and secured.
The walls will be adorned with vendor shelving to display empty product packages which highlight the
products of the vendors we sell at the store. The HD TVs on the walls will also showcase the products
we sell to add to the visual experience at our store. Authentic stores are renowned for their modern and
luxurious interior and Hollywood Reporter recognized our store as an “art gallery cannabis emporium”
in their August 21, 2019 feature on our downtown Los Angeles store.26
The recessed lighting will include LED light fixtures throughout to keep the sales floor properly illumi-
nated for staff and customers.
Accessibility
The location is less than 400 feet off of the Ashlan Avenue Exit off of the 99 Highway. The store will
also be highly visible from the 99 Highway for the 88,000 cars that traverse it daily. This part of
Ashlan Avenue also has a high 20,300 daily traffic count and is less than half a mile away from popular
destinations such as Starbucks, Walgreens, Foster Freeze and Subway which are all on Ashlan Avenue.
Additionally, the proximity to the freeway will also bolster our industry best delivery platform, Blaze,
permitting us to deliver to addresses up and down the 99. See below a map of the area.
26 https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/la-brand-stiiizy-opens-flagship-art-gallery-cannabis-emporium-1233500
Similarities with Our Los Angeles Location
Our Los Angeles location is the highest grossing store in California at approximately $55 million per
year. Four main reasons for our success in Los Angeles are (1) its close proximity to the 101 Freeway,
(2) 40 parking spaces, (3) 6,500 square feet and (4) our reputation for selling safe, high quality products
at illicit market prices. We believe this Fresno location checks off each of these characteristics which
make our Los Angeles store a success. The Fresno location has even better visibility from the freeway,
more parking spots and a larger retail floor. Add in the fact that the Los Angeles store has 10 other
dispensaries it competes with within a 5 mile radius, and we have every reason to believe this Fresno
location should have as much success as our Los Angeles location. See below our revenue numbers for
the Los Angeles location during the last three months:
Floor Plan
As can be seen in the floor plan following, the customer will enter the store through the public entrance
on the south side of the building. The customer will enter into a 660 square foot lobby where the check-
in associates will check the customer’s ID and register their profiles into our Point of Sale system. The
customer will be buzzed into our retail floor directly north of the lobby area after IDs are verified.
The 3000 square foot retail floor will have a continuous shopping counter on the west, north and east
side of the retail floor. The rest of the 3000 square foot space will be mostly open floor for customers to
take in the visual experience and for customers to form lines. A locked employees only door on the west
side of the retail floor will permit employees to stand behind the employee only portion of the shopping
counters and for employee to access the rest of the employee-only back of house area. These employee-
only areas include the security office on the south west side of the building, a 790 square foot delivery
preparation area on the north west side of the building, a secured inventory room on the east side of the
retail floor, two offices and a secure loading and unloading area on the far east side of the building next
to the secure entrance/exit.
6.2. Photograph of Building Frontage
See below photographs of the front of the building.
6.3. Premise Diagram
See below a premise diagram that shows the overall parcel and neighboring parcels and buildings. As
can been seen in the diagram following, the large 1.23 acre lot will contain 94 dedicated parking spots
on the south and east side of the property. The business to the north of us has permanently closed and
the 7-Eleven to the east of our parcel is the only other business adjacent to our Business. The business
will have two driveways to enter and exit the parking lot off of West Ashlan Avenue on the south side of
the store entrance. Due to our business sitting in the middle of such a large parcel and away from other
businesses, we should have very little impact on any other persons or businesses.
7. COMMUNITY BENEFITS AND INVESTMENTS PLAN
Shryne Group has a track record of providing community benefits in all of the cities where we operate.
In the past year alone, we’ve donated over to various non-profits such as the Boys and Girls
Club, Food Share, Imperial Valley Food Bank, United Playaz, and veterans’ organizations such as Battle
Brothers and Vet Hunters. Our employees also utilize their 24 hours of paid time off for volunteerism
by volunteering at local homeless shelters, clean-up projects such as Battle for the Bay and local food
drives. In addition to the commitments we have already made set forth in Section 7.1 below, we will
provide monetary support, food and supplies and volunteer time on a monthly basis to homeless shelters,
veteran organizations and other organizations which assist Fresno citizens of need. See below examples
of volunteerism by our employees just within the past 3 months.
7.1 Social Responsibility Plan
In continuing our history of social responsibility in every city where we operate, we have made the
following contributions and commitments in Fresno.
• Fresno County Economic Development Corporation27: The Fresno County Economic
Development Corporation is the premier non-profit organization in Fresno committed to job and
business development in Fresno. During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic when thousands
were experiencing job loss, we made an initial contribution of to the Fresno County Economic
Development Corporation to support their job training and job creation efforts. We have also
committed to provide an annual contribution of a year if we have the honor of opening a
business in Fresno. In our discussions with this organization, we are hoping to help fund the Central
Valley Training Center, which is partnered with the California High Speed Rail Authority, to provide
a 16 week apprenticeship training that will then provide job placement to program participants on
the high speed rail system. We will also partner with the Fresno County Economic Development
Corporation to recruit low-income Fresno residents, unemployed Fresno residents, former foster
home youths and Fresno residents living in low income census tracts for positions at our company.
We look forward to discussing various partnerships with the Fresno County Economic Development
Corporation to create more job opportunities for Fresno residents. See the end of this section for our
LOI with the Fresno County Economic Development Corporation.
• Shryne Foundation: Authentic Fresno will utilize the Shryne Group’s own charitable giving
group, the Shryne Foundation for continued support in the community. The Shryne Foundation
has an advisory board consisting of Shryne Group management, which will work with selected
local community representatives to guide the charitable priorities as needed in the city of Fresno.
Areas of focus for the Foundation include drug education and youth related prevention, economic
development, education, environment, homelessness, and drug abuse. Under these areas of focus we
will be able to address community needs such as new technology, job training, or a healthy lifestyle/
nutrition campaign. Additional organizations we are committed to supporting through the Foundation
include the Boys & Girls Clubs of Fresno County, Central California Food Bank, Marjaree Mason
Center, Pinedale Community Group, and the United Way of Fresno among others. We are committed
to providing a year to this Foundation annually.
27 https://www.fresnoedc.com/
• Fresno City College: Authentic Fresno has partnered with Fresno City College to implement and
execute our Scholarship and Apprenticeship Program. We will sponsor 3 Fresno residents who
would qualify as a Social Equity Applicant under FMC Article 33 § 9-3316(b)(6) to attend classes at
Fresno City College towards their Certificate of Retail Management Certificate (or another certificate
if they so desire). Books and other similar expenses will also be paid for. These scholarship
recipients will also have the opportunity (but are not obligated) to work part-time at one of our retail,
cultivation, manufacturing or distribution facilities in Central California. Our goal with this program,
which has been a great success in Los Angeles, is to provide low income individuals, individuals
who have been convicted of a cannabis crime and other Fresno citizens who would qualify as a
Social Equity Applicant the educational foundation and hands on experience in cannabis to be able
to own or operate his or her own cannabis business. See the end of this section for our LOI with the
Fresno City College.
• Local, Unionized Jobs for Veterans, Formerly Incarcerated and Low Income Residents: As
mentioned previously, we will hire at least 70% Fresno residents and provide unionized, living wage
jobs. We have a partnership with JVS28 for them to place veterans at our organization and hope to
recruit Fresno veterans for our store. We will also work directly with the Fresno County Economic
Development Corps to identify low income residents who have annual family income below 80%
AMI, are unemployed or receiving public assistance. As mentioned below, we will also look to hire
local residents who were convicted of cannabis related offenses who we will have the opportunity to
meet at our expungement clinics.
• Assisting Fresno Social Equity Applicants: As mentioned previously, we currently support 13
individuals in San Francisco, Oakland and Los Angeles who qualify as social equity cannabis owners
in these respective cities. In Oakland, we are also incubating 3 social equity individuals by providing
them with free rent on spaces for them to operate their manufacturing and distribution businesses and
also by providing them with legal, accounting and business assistance for their businesses. We have
also committed to providing various social equity business owners shelf space for their cannabis
brands. We are committed to providing the following to the Social Equity Applicants in Fresno:
28 https://www.jvs.org/
• Fresno Santa’s Village/Fresno Police Department: We also supported the Fresno Police
Department with monetary contributions in each of 2019 and in 2020 towards their annual Santa’s
Village event. We will continue to support this cause every year.
Local Co-Owner Matt Garza also has a long history of giving back to the Fresno community. Matt and
his family contribute to various local causes, including contributing annually to the following causes:
• Monetary contributions to Fellowship of Christian Athletes
• Donation of shoes and clothes to Valley Children Medical Center
• Participation in St. Jude’s Catholic Church food and gift drives
• Hosting Casa Fresno Madera to raise funds to support foster children
• Donation of money and athletic equipment to various Fresno County schools
Matt and the Shryne Group look forward to identifying additional organizations and individuals who
we can assist as part of our community benefits pledge. At the very least, we are committed to having
all of our employees volunteer at least 24 hours a year at the expungement clinics described below,
the Valley Children Medical Center, Marjaree Mason Center and veteran and homeless organizations
within Fresno. Each of our stores average around 300 volunteer hours per year and we believe we will
surpass 300 hours at this location because of the local ties we have already established through Matt
Garza’s local connections. Our employees will be able to take advantage of the monthly volunteer events
organized through our Community Benefits Director DeRon Waller and they will be permitted to find
volunteer events on their own to take full advantage of the volunteerism encouraged by our organization.
7.1.1. Expungement Clinics
Pursuant to Proposition 47, which permits Californians to reclassify or expunge certain criminal records,
we have hosted expungement clinics in conjunction with our union partner, the UFCW. We strongly
believe that it is inequitable for certain crimes, including simple drug possession, to prevent people from
future job opportunities and are committed to holding expungement clinics in Fresno at least twice a
year. To the right is our a flyer for a recent expungement clinic we held at our store in San Bernardino.
7.1.2. Environmentally Sustainable Business Model
Authentic Fresno will be governed by Shryne Group’s Climate Action Plan, which is a commitment
to ensure climate neutrality by 2025. The plan requires Authentic Fresno to use sustainability sourced
materials such as lumber from the Timber Products Company, which is environmentally certified and
adheres to the Sustainable Forestry Initiative and the California Forest Protection Act. All the timber we
use will also come from environmentally responsible tree farms, will contain no added formaldehyde
and will use finishing which will not result in release of any VOCs (volatile organic compounds).
Authentic Fresno will also utilize solar power through solar panels placed on the exterior and the
roof. Our solar inverter will convert direct current electricity into usable alternating current electricity.
Because the inverter will be connected to the power grid, any excess power generated by the solar
system will be fed into the grid for others in the community to use. Additionally, we will use LED
lighting and automatic sensors to limit unnecessary electrical use. To further minimize power
consumption, we will install natural lighting solutions such as Solatubes which captures natural light
from the outside and generates light in exponential amounts through the use of reflective materials which
bounce off of each other.
Our goal at every store is to recycle 75% of all materials. Our retail stores receive large amounts of
cardboard and other packaging materials, and we will reuse all of this
packaging materials for our own deliveries. We also provide customers with
$0.50 off their purchase if they bring their previous Authentic or Stiiizy (our
2 retail brands) shopping bag into the store.
Our cannabis waste management company, Cannabis Waste Solutions, also
recycles our cannabis waste to be used for asphalt or construction materials,
and this commitment to recycling is one of the reasons we engage them at all
our facilities.
All of our delivery vehicles to be used out of Fresno will be electric or
hybrid vehicles to further reduce our carbon footprint. We will also install
Electric Vehicle Charging Stations and install bike racks to encourage
customers and employees to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
7.1.3. Using Vacant Brownfield Land
As can be seen in the photo below, the northeastern portion of the parcel we will own, contains a vacant
and undeveloped area which is currently in disrepair. With the City’s approval, we hope to develop
this area of our parcel into a parking lot and signage to advertise our business. This area is currently
accumulating large amounts of trash and other wastes and we believe developing this area into parking
or some other use will be a benefit to the community.
Science of Cannabis 101
Smoking
• Cannabinoids inhaled into lungs and Alveoli (small air
sacks in your lungs) enter the bloodstream then cross
the blood-brain barrier
• Effects occur within 90 seconds
• Smoking allows user to enjoy benefits of all
cannabinoids and terpenes of the flower together
• The various strains allow users to experiment and find
one that works best for their needs
Vapes
• Smokeless delivery which uses warm air or heat rather
than a flame
• Similar effect to smoked cannabis, but you are typically
heating extract instead of flower
• Early onset - effects appear within 90 seconds
• Some pens are disposable while others are cartridges
Edibles
• Food products that have been infused with cannabis
• Companies use different methods to extract the
cannabinoids and then add them to their products
• Edibles hit people harder because THC turns into
11 -hydroxy-THC by liver cells before entering the
bloodstream
• Effects occur between 15 minutes to 2 hours after
ingestion
We also have educational materials on our website geared towards parents who want to teach their kids
about the dangers of underage cannabis use. The content contains recommended links such as to the
CDC’s website on teen drug use to provide scientific information regarding teen drug prevention and
abuse. See below an example of the type of information we share on our website.
Additionally, we have created a foundation called the Shryne Foundation which is a fund dedicated
to youth drug prevention and education, economic development, education and homelessness. The
Foundation would be co-managed by Shryne Group executives and members of the Fresno community
and would provide monetary contributions to fund drug education programs and drug prevention
programs in coordination with the City of Fresno. We are committed to providing a year to this
Foundation annually.
We have also recently partnered with the leading Spanish language magazine in California, Para Todos
(http://paratodos.com/pt/), for us to provide monthly educational articles on cannabis for their Spanish
language readers. The topics covered in our monthly articles include preventing youth access, health
and science of cannabis, dosing and other topics which can educate the Spanish speaking community in
Fresno and other cities in California on the risks of youth use of cannabis and drug addiction.
Additionally, Authentic Fresno will host monthly education seminars on cannabis products and related
safety issues. Interactive presentations by an Authentic Fresno employee or other cannabis expert will be
followed by Q&A sessions. Past presentations include optimal and safe dosing amounts, the dangers of
driving under the influence, and different consumption methods and their effects.
Shryne Group has also engaged former Ultimate Fighting Championship veteran Tyson Griffin to
participate in our cannabis education seminars at all its retail locations29. Tyson is an advocate of the
safe consumption of cannabis and CBD, as well as stretching exercises, to reduce joint pain, anxiety, and
depression. Once the proposed store is open, Tyson will hold regular educational seminars at the store to
educate citizens on safe cannabis use along with cannabis and holistic well-being.
We are committed to educating our customers and youth on drug abuse prevention. All cannabis
products should only be consumed by persons who are at least 21 years old and in a safe and responsible
fashion. The success of our industry depends on this.
7.3 Commitment to Fresno Community Reinvestment Fund
In addition to providing assistance to local cannabis equity businesses by providing them with legal,
accounting and compliance services, providing shelf space and advising them on their business, Shryne
Group is committed to providing at least a year to the Fresno Community Reinvestment Fund to
further assist local cannabis equity businesses.
29 https://www.tysongriffin.com/
ASSIGNMENT AND ASSUMPTION OF PURCHASE AGREEMENT
This Assignment and Assumption of Purchase Agreement (the “Assignment”) is made as
of November 1, 2020, by and between SGI Retail LLC, a California limited liability company (the
“Assignor”), and Authentic 559 LLC (the “Assignee”) with reference to the following facts:
In consideration of the foregoing premises and the mutual covenants and promises contained
herein, and for other good and valuable consideration, the receipt and sufficiency of which are
hereby acknowledged, the parties hereby agree as follows:
1. Assignment and Assumption. Assignor hereby assigns to Assignee the Purchase
and Sale Agreement dated as of September 4, 2020, by and between Assignor and MMPF, LLC
for the premises located at4248 W. Ashlan Avenue, Fresno, CA 93722 (the “Purchase
Agreement”) and Assignee hereby assumes and agrees to perform and discharge those obligations
and liabilities under the Purchase Agreement.
2. Counterparts. This Assignment may be executed in one or more counterparts, each
of which shall for all purposes be deemed an original and all of such counterparts, taken together,
shall constitute one and the same Assignment. The exchange of copies of this Assignment and of
signature pages by facsimile transmission or .PDF delivered via email will constitute effective
execution and delivery of this Assignment as to the parties and may be used in lieu of the original
Assignment for all purposes.
3. Governing Law. This Assignment and the rights of the parties hereunder will be
governed by, interpreted, and enforced in accordance with the laws of the State of California
without regard for conflict of laws rules.
4. Severability. If any provision of this Assignment is held to be illegal, invalid or
unenforceable under the present or future laws effective during the term of this Assignment, such
provision will be fully severable and the remaining provisions of this Assignment will remain in
full force and effect.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties hereto have executed this Assignment as of the date
first set forth above.
ASSIGNOR ASSIGNEE
SGI Retail LLC Authentic 559 LLC
______________________ __________________________
Name: Brian Mitchell Name: Brian Mitchell
Its: Authorized Signatory Its: Authorized Sig natory
Brian Mitchell (Nov 23, 2020 12:50 PST)
Brian Mitchell
Brian Mitchell (Nov 23, 2020 12:50 PST)
Brian Mitchell
PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT
2600 Fresno Street • Third Floor Jennifer K. Clark, AICP, Director
Fresno, California 93721-3604
(559) 621-8277 FAX (559) 498-1026
November 19, 2020 Please reply to:
Rob Holt
(559) 621-8056
Brian Mitchell
Shryne Group
728 E Commercial St
Los Angeles, CA 90012
Dear Applicant:
SUBJECT: ZONING INQUIRY NUMBER P20-04070 REQUESTING INFORMATION
REGARDING CANNABIS RETAIL FOR PROPERTY LOCATED AT 4248 WEST
ASHLAN AVENUE
(APN 510-100-48S)
Thank you for your inquiry regarding the allowance of new cannabis retail uses. The requested
information about cannabis retail uses was analyzed using Article 27, Chapter 15 of the Fresno
Municipal Code (FMC) of the City of Fresno. Please note, all research for this inquiry is based
on existing land development of the subject property. If there are multiple buildings on the
subject property, this research was based on the address provided in the request. This research
does not take into effect of future development unless provided in your application request. With
that, research of a proposed cannabis retail business on the subject property conveys the
following:
1. All cannabis retail businesses must be located on property zoned DTN (Downtown
Neighborhood), DTG (Downtown General), CMS (Commercial Main Street), CC
(Commercial Community), CR (Commercial Regional), CG (Commercial General), CH
(Commercial Highway), NMX (Neighborhood Mixed-Use), CMX (Corridor/Center Mixed-
Use), RMX (Regional Mixed-Use), and must meet all of the requirements for
development in these zones, including, but not limited to, parking, lighting, building
materials, etc.
The subject property is zoned CG, which is one of the allowable zone districts for
cannabis retail businesses. Development standards of the CG zone district are available
in Sections 15-1203, 15-1204, and 15-1205 of the FMC. The subject location meets
the zone district requirement, per Section 15-2739.B.1.a of the FMC, for a cannabis
retail business.
2. All building(s) in which a cannabis retail business is located shall be no closer than 800
feet from any property boundary containing the following: (1) A cannabis retail business;
(2) A school providing instruction for any grades pre-school through 12 (whether public,
private, or charter, including pre-school, transitional kindergarten, and K-12); (3) A day
care center licensed by the state Department of Social Services that is in existence at
the time a complete commercial cannabis business permit application is submitted; and,
(4) A youth center that is in existence at the time a complete commercial cannabis
business permit is submitted.
Zoning Inquiry P20-04070
4248 West Ashlan Avenue
Page 2
November 19, 2020
The subject property is not located within 800 feet of the property boundary of any of the
above-mentioned uses. The subject building meets the separation requirements,
per Section 15-2739.B.1.b of the FMC, for a cannabis retail business.
3. Prior to commencing operations, a cannabis retail business must obtain a Cannabis
Conditional Use Permit from the Planning and Development Department per Section 15-
2739.N of the FMC.
4. No more than 2 cannabis retail businesses may be located in any one Council District. If
more than 14 are ever authorized by Council (more than 2 per Council District), they
shall be dispersed evenly by Council District.
The subject property is in Council District 1. There are currently no cannabis retail
businesses located in Council District 1. This location requirement is satisfied for a
cannabis retail business.
Please review the entirety of Article 33, Chapter 9 (Cannabis Retail Business and
Commercial Cannabis), and Section 15-2739 (Adult Use and Medicinal Cannabis Retail
Business and Commercial Cannabis Business) of the FMC to understand other
requirements of cannabis retail businesses, including but not limited to, application
requirements, signage, etc.
This information was researched by the undersigned per the zoning request. The undersigned
certifies that the above information contained herein is believed to be accurate and is based
upon, or relates to, the information supplied by the requestor. The City of Fresno assumes no
liability for errors and omissions. All information was obtained from public records held by the
Planning and Development Department.
A copy of the Fresno Municipal Code may be obtained by contacting the City Clerk’s office at
559-621-7650. The Fresno Municipal Code may also be searched on the Internet, free of
charge, by going to www.fresno.gov. If you have questions regarding this matter, please
contact me by telephone at 559-621-8056 or at Robert.Holt@fresno.gov.
Cordially,
Rob Holt, Planner III
Development Services Division
Planning and Development Department
PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT
2600 Fresno Street • Third Floor Jennifer K. Clark, AICP, Director
Fresno, California 93721-3604
(559) 621-8277 FAX (559) 498-1026
November 19, 2020 Please reply to:
Rob Holt
(559) 621-8056
Brian Mitchell
Shryne Group
728 E Commercial St
Los Angeles, CA 90012
Dear Applicant:
SUBJECT: ZONING INQUIRY NUMBER P20-04070 REQUESTING INFORMATION
REGARDING CANNABIS RETAIL FOR PROPERTY LOCATED AT 4248 WEST
ASHLAN AVENUE
(APN 510-100-48S)
Thank you for your inquiry regarding the allowance of new cannabis retail uses. The requested
information about cannabis retail uses was analyzed using Article 27, Chapter 15 of the Fresno
Municipal Code (FMC) of the City of Fresno. Please note, all research for this inquiry is based
on existing land development of the subject property. If there are multiple buildings on the
subject property, this research was based on the address provided in the request. This research
does not take into effect of future development unless provided in your application request. With
that, research of a proposed cannabis retail business on the subject property conveys the
following:
1. All cannabis retail businesses must be located on property zoned DTN (Downtown
Neighborhood), DTG (Downtown General), CMS (Commercial Main Street), CC
(Commercial Community), CR (Commercial Regional), CG (Commercial General), CH
(Commercial Highway), NMX (Neighborhood Mixed-Use), CMX (Corridor/Center Mixed-
Use), RMX (Regional Mixed-Use), and must meet all of the requirements for
development in these zones, including, but not limited to, parking, lighting, building
materials, etc.
The subject property is zoned CG, which is one of the allowable zone districts for
cannabis retail businesses. Development standards of the CG zone district are available
in Sections 15-1203, 15-1204, and 15-1205 of the FMC. The subject location meets
the zone district requirement, per Section 15-2739.B.1.a of the FMC, for a cannabis
retail business.
2. All building(s) in which a cannabis retail business is located shall be no closer than 800
feet from any property boundary containing the following: (1) A cannabis retail business;
(2) A school providing instruction for any grades pre-school through 12 (whether public,
private, or charter, including pre-school, transitional kindergarten, and K-12); (3) A day
care center licensed by the state Department of Social Services that is in existence at
the time a complete commercial cannabis business permit application is submitted; and,
(4) A youth center that is in existence at the time a complete commercial cannabis
business permit is submitted.
Zoning Inquiry P20-04070
4248 West Ashlan Avenue
Page 2
November 19, 2020
The subject property is not located within 800 feet of the property boundary of any of the
above-mentioned uses. The subject building meets the separation requirements,
per Section 15-2739.B.1.b of the FMC, for a cannabis retail business.
3. Prior to commencing operations, a cannabis retail business must obtain a Cannabis
Conditional Use Permit from the Planning and Development Department per Section 15-
2739.N of the FMC.
4. No more than 2 cannabis retail businesses may be located in any one Council District. If
more than 14 are ever authorized by Council (more than 2 per Council District), they
shall be dispersed evenly by Council District.
The subject property is in Council District 1. There are currently no cannabis retail
businesses located in Council District 1. This location requirement is satisfied for a
cannabis retail business.
Please review the entirety of Article 33, Chapter 9 (Cannabis Retail Business and
Commercial Cannabis), and Section 15-2739 (Adult Use and Medicinal Cannabis Retail
Business and Commercial Cannabis Business) of the FMC to understand other
requirements of cannabis retail businesses, including but not limited to, application
requirements, signage, etc.
This information was researched by the undersigned per the zoning request. The undersigned
certifies that the above information contained herein is believed to be accurate and is based
upon, or relates to, the information supplied by the requestor. The City of Fresno assumes no
liability for errors and omissions. All information was obtained from public records held by the
Planning and Development Department.
A copy of the Fresno Municipal Code may be obtained by contacting the City Clerk’s office at
559-621-7650. The Fresno Municipal Code may also be searched on the Internet, free of
charge, by going to www.fresno.gov. If you have questions regarding this matter, please
contact me by telephone at 559-621-8056 or at Robert.Holt@fresno.gov.
Cordially,
Rob Holt, Planner III
Development Services Division
Planning and Development Department