Susan: Welcome to Calaveras cannabis.farm
My name is Susan Tomasich and today I have with me Zach Drivon. He is an attorney at law, and he is an expert in the area of commercial cannabis. Welcome, Zach.
Zach: Thanks for having me, Susan.
Susan: You are welcome. So do you want to talk a little bit about your background? And then we can get into the details of commercial cannabis?
Zach: Sure. Sure. Well, born and raised in Stockton, California, just over the hill. I went to Sonoma State University and studied political science. Took a year off at a grocery store job and, and decided to go to law school in, 2009, I attended the Lawrence Drivon School of Law in Stockton, California. Kind of a legacy school.
My father went there. Grandfather a couple of cousins, couple of uncles. You kind of can’t throw a stick around Stockton without hitting a Drivon attorney. At least historically. Graduated in 2013. I went into criminal defense practicing out of an office in Modesto, California. Really fell in love with that. Defending people’s rights and kind of sticking up for the underdog.
From childhood as it relates to cannabis. I’ve always had an affinity for the culture. You know, I don’t think it’s any big secret. Some friends of mine growing up, you know, were in the trade on a, you know, very modest scale. And then once we got out of high school, some of them went off to start their own cannabis collectives and farms.
And so in 2016, when regulations came out from the state that were proposing to allow cannabis businesses to operate as, you know, commercial ventures, started doing research around it and started having conversations with some of these friends of mine and others that I had met, through practice, about what their plans were to transition into the regulated space.
One thing led to another and got started doing policy reform advocacy in Stockton. And, the rest is history is a I could sit here and, you know, and take us ten hours to tell the whole legacy, journey to get us to here. But it has been quite a journey. And so that’s the quick background on how I got to be a cannabis attorney.
Susan: All right. Were you, practicing in cannabis in in 2016 up here when we had the urgency ordinance?
Zach: I wasn’t directly active in advocating for the urgency ordinance. I was aware of it. Some of the operators up here that were very, very much involved. Were part of the group that were having these conversations. We focused on policy reform in the Valley at that point in time.
But I was aware of the registration process and the efforts by some of the more prominent operators to get regs on the books and carve a path out here for growers. So, yeah, I was aware of it, but I can’t lay any claim to haven’t been very active at that point in time.
Susan: Okay. So you pretty much came up here when we got the permanent ordinance installed
Zach: correct, and when it was time to, get rights to apply and start putting permit applications in, by that time, you know, we had gotten, I don’t know, probably around 10 or 12 projects approved in the Valley.
And, had clients that I represented out there with retail operations that wanted to, get farms going up here. And so that’s how I started out, was getting a few, farms permitted around like 2018, 2019 since that time. With every project, this is how my practice has progressed with every project that we get, you know, approved in any given jurisdiction.
Word kind of spreads. And we picked up a lot more business since then. I think at this point of time, we’ve probably done 8 or 10 different projects, inclusive of 15, 16 local permits and, you know, a bunch more state licenses behind those. So, we’re still active. We have about 5 or 6 clients that we currently represent here.
Now with regulatory compliance, general legal counsel. You know, the way that our practice operates is we focus on getting you the licenses, helping you develop the projects, and then once the projects are up and running, serving as your general counsel and maintaining regulatory compliance with a full suite of administrative support. For anything and everything having to do with local permits and state licenses.
That’s our focus.
Susan: Okay. And up here in Calaveras County, what type of licenses do we have available to us?
Zach: The vast majority you’re going to see is, cultivation licenses.
Susan: Okay.
Zach: Outdoor cultivation specifically. It’s one of the few, local jurisdictions that authorizes outdoor cultivation. And beyond that, if your property meets the criteria for a ministerial permit, the difference between a ministerial permit and, say, a conditional use permit is if your project meets all of the base criteria under the ordinance with a ministerial permit, it’s not up to the discretion of a governing body like the Board of Supervisors to decide whether or not you get a permit.
If you can check the boxes and meet the criteria, then then you’re going to get a permit. That’s in ag areas for the most part for cultivation. We also in Calaveras, I say we generally, allow indoor cultivation in industrial areas, distribution and manufacturing. And while there are a few retail facilities in Calaveras County, that’s not one of the licenses that, that you see, predominate here.
It’s mostly cannabis cultivation.
Susan: Okay. And during your time here, what have you found to be the biggest pitfall for someone who wants to start a cannabis business?
Zach: I think poor planning more than anything. Under capitalization, getting into a project with just enough resources to get started. And, you know, in certain circumstances, not having the capital that’s necessary to get you to that first harvest.
A lot of times we see, you know, not a lot of time, let’s say once or twice, we’ve taken on clients that had commitments from Capital Partners or investors, and were able to get their permits going and maybe get their farms up and running. But for instance, didn’t have the resources necessary to pay their laborers to get them through harvest or didn’t have the capital necessary for some critical piece of equipment or what have you.
It’s like, a failure to launch for lack of that, ramp that you need to really see your first harvest and have a little contingency in your back pocket. For the just in case situations. That’s probably the biggest pitfall. We try and get ahead of all that. When we sit down with our clients, we’ll do a consultation, and talk to them about, you know, what all the requirements are as far as the financial responsibilities, permit fees, you know, water board fees, state license fees.
You know, we take a look at your lease obligations. If you’re purchasing a property, what the cost of that is going to look like from start to finish if you’re getting, you know, environmental resources studies, any mitigation measures, that’s going to require potentially earthwork grading, construction, we help kind of connect the dots for our clients, to articulate what that plan is going to look like.
So, you have a solid idea of what it’s going to take to be successful before you go ahead and dive in. So, I think, you know, a pound of planning upfront, is worth, you know, a ton of execution at the, at the back end. So.
Susan: Okay, now, a lot of people up here were farming in 2016 with the urgency ordinance before that, they were farming under the medical cannabis structure.
And I think at that time, like friends that get together and they form a business and they do their LLC or whatever, they were going to, however structure they wanted their business to be. And that worked fine for then. But now in the new climate that we’re in, the new business climate that we’re in, there’s a lot more stresses.
Susan: I think the taxes is one, having to pay tax, whether you sell a pound of pot or not, you’re still obligated for the county tax. Here, I think it’s much more important to get someone like yourself involved in the nitty gritty. So, what happens if I farm with you for three years and at the end of the third year?
I just hate your guts, and I cannot stand being around you anymore. Now, what do we do?
Zach: Yeah, that’s a good question. It’s somewhat of an open question. I think again, it comes down to planning and having proper documentation and, and contractual agreements between partners before, money is spent and certainly before money starts coming through the door.
That’s, you know, that’s what complicates things more often than not is when money gets tight and you have to reach back into your pocket to keep the business going, where’s that going to come from? Right. And so, you know, if you have a company that you’re forming for the specific purpose of, having a cannabis business as a startup, those things need to be spelled out in plain words, okay, you’re going to be a 50% owner.
How much you contributing for that 50%? Okay. In the event of, you know, an additional capital raise or a cash call to bring more money through the door before we start generating revenue, whose obligation is that going to be? And so that’s where, you know, having shareholder agreements for corporations or operating agreements between the members of a of an LLC that are, that are getting into this is extremely important to your point.
That way, you know, these questions come up down the line after you’re already in it. We say here, look, this is our agreement. This is what it says. This is what we have to go by. We both signed this. And you know, this is this is the Bible as far as the obligations that we both have to see this through when it hits the fan, you know, you start talking about either dissolving the company or selling the membership interest or the shares of one partner or another.
If the person wants out, or you start talking about, you know, diluting your, equity in the company to raise more capital and bring an additional partner. These are all things that, you know should be spelled out, in writing and agreed to between partners before they before they start a business.
Susan: Okay. Now, let’s talk a little bit about the class four license.
And I believe that includes Self-Distribution. Okay. Is that correct? Self-Distribution. Yeah, that is an option for cultivators here.
Susan: Okay.
Zach: That would allow, an operator to transport their own product. There’s a bit of a caveat there. I think, it’s a little ironic. In order to get a self-distribution license from the county, you need to apply for a type 11 license from the state, which it’s not a self-distribution license.
It’s actually just a general distribution license that you’re going to get. So, we talk about policy reform stuff. I think that’s a little clean up that we could look to in the future. But effectively, in order to legally transport product, you have to have a state license, and you have to have, a local authorization to engage in that activity.
So the self-distribution where you can’t get a traditional third party distribution license on an ag property where you’d be cultivating here in the county, you can get a self-distribution license, so long as you have a cultivation license that it can attach to, you know, so it gives the growers a little more latitude, to be able to move product on their own.
Susan: Okay. So, if I had one, let’s say I could possibly, package flower, do pre-rolls, put them in my own packaging, and then instead of having to take them to yet another distributor who would then go to a retailer, I can take my product and go straight to a retailer, is that correct?
Zach: Yeah. I don’t, you know, operational concerns.
I don’t want to really speak to those, per se. I will say, under a type 11 state license, you can package, transport. You can call a lab to come test your product. You know, you can deliver product to other distributors, other retailers. You can do pre-rolls. You cannot do infused pre-rolls. Okay? None of these pre-rolls, only those are all things that you can do under a type 11 license.
What you can do on your AG property. It depends on the the nature of the facilities and the occupancy that you have in addition to the local permits that you’re holding. So I don’t want to make a blanket statement and get, you know, someone who’s watching in trouble.
Susan: Okay.
Zach: It was a case by case basis. You know, a lot of what we do is we take a look at state regs, we take a look at local regs. We take a look at, you know, an operators specific type of functions and what they have going on. And we do an assessment for them of, you know, the do’s and don’ts and, you know, plan to make accommodations for additional activities that they want to engage in and tell them, you know what, not to do in order to keep them out of trouble and help them be successful.
So, you know, it’s not plug and play. One size doesn’t necessarily fit all. So I want to be careful about, you know, the things that are represented as far as what you can and can’t do or that be case by case basis.
Susan: Yeah. So what are the common I was going to say pitfalls. We may have already talked about that. But here in the county, in the people that you’ve worked with, what, what has been the most common thing that’s brought them down? I mean, I’ve heard that permits are being, pulled because they can’t pay taxes.
Zach: People can’t pay their taxes. Sure. Yeah. We’ve seen that. You know, that comes back to financial resources. I think, you know, the backdrop to all this is since 2021, we’ve seen like a 60 plus percent decline in the cannabis market statewide.
And so where growers early on were able to get, you know, between 800 and $2000 a pound this season, we’re seeing 250 bucks a pound. You know, we’re seeing operators that are having to do fire sales on bulk product at a buck 50 a pound.
Susan: Right.
Zach: Just to bring money through the door and keep the keep the show on the road.So to speak. But yeah, certainly, you know, taxes have been an issue. We’ve we’ve got a 60% reduction. Last three years that that has helped, operationally, I think having facilities to dry and cure your product once it’s harvested, that’s been a huge, huge problem. And there’s a demand, for drying, curing and storage space.
I think in this jurisdiction specifically, and I think you know, statewide, at least in Northern California, there’s a there’s a need for that. You’re seeing growers who’ve been able to have a great yield, have a great harvest, but don’t have the space, you know, the conditioned space to be able to see that product through and, and try to cure it properly so that it’s marketable and so that you can fetch the highest price possible, you know, ways to mitigate that, and save on labor costs is if you’re able to sell your product fresh frozen right off, right off the stock.
We’ve seen a lot of operators do that, especially early on, during harvest, to the extent that operators can afford to try and cure product and, and hold on to it, a little bit deeper into the year and, you know, into early next year and maybe see prices go up. That’s another approach that operators can take.
But yeah, that’s pretty common is, you know, to get all the way to the five yard line with harvest. And then literally, you know, we were out at a facility, last week where, you know, there’s an acre and a half of, cannabis still sitting out in the freezing cold, wet air. And so it’s a shame to see, but it does happen, again, comes back to planning.
Right?
Susan: Right.
Zach: You know, and without naming operators or whatever, in this case, you had someone that, bought probably twice as many clones as they had last year, but they didn’t build twice as many buildings. And so you say it’s a good problem to have, but as far as having, you know, a ton of weed to sell, but if you can’t bring it home and you can’t bring it to a state, well, where it’s going to make sense and, you know, be worthwhile to grow and harvest.
You know, you could help yourself out upfront by having a better plan in place.
Susan: Is there an opportunity in Calaveras County for someone to have a drying facility that they can rent out to other farmers, or is that against our regulations?
Zach: Well, I believe the answer generally is is yes. Rent out is, kind of a tricky way of putting it.
There are, processor licenses available at the state level. It’s a subset of the cultivation license. And what a processor license allows is for, an operator to take in harvested product from third parties, dry it, cure it. They could offer that as a service. Or they could purchase that product from the open market, dry it, cure it, and then resell it.
The terms of that, you know, business arrangement between grower and processor is really just contractual. But yeah, I think that is, that’s an opportunity that’s out here. And I know of a couple operators specifically that, have constructed facilities, you know, for that purpose, in addition to having the facilities to drive their own, their own product.
But yeah, that is a possibility. We’ve explored that, with some of the county officials. There’s there’s a way to get it done. The distributor license plays into that. The Self-Distribution license is, as you noted, for, facility. That would happen to be in an ag zone. But, yeah, I think there’s a need for it.
Susan: I do too, and I my question is on the transportation so the self-distributor can transport their product legally if I don’t have a Self-Distribution license.
And I want to come to your facility and let’s say use your service, you’re going to, dry & cure for me. How do I get it from my farm to the, drying facility?
Zach: Legally, you have to contract with the distributor. Whether it’s the processor that has a distributor license as part of his operations, and he or she is going to come pick that up and bring it back to their facility, or you contract with the third party distributor to to come pick that product up and, and take it to the processing facility.
It’s, it’s, mandated by state law that, distributor is the one that, that transports that product anywhere it goes out, you know, other than within your own your property.
Susan: Sure. How about testing? Are people coming up here to test, or are we having to send things down to the valley or somewhere else to get testing done?
Zach: Yeah, I’m not aware of, a lab testing facility here in Calaveras County. In fact, I think there’s very few in the Valley generally. Most of them are in the Bay area and Southern California. And so what you’ll see happen is you’ll have a distributor that comes that picks up from a farm, takes the product back to their distribution facility, and from there they’ll have the lab come out, pull samples from their inventory, take the samples back to the lab, get them tested, and then the results come back.
And if you get a passing certificate of analysis, a CoA, then that product is free to be distributed on down the line. Okay, that’s how it works.
Susan: And are you familiar with, kind of the legalities of the lab, I was told, and I have not looked this up, that you can’t have a lab that both tests cannabis and then is used for other things.A nd that just seems a little weird to me. But, this industry has some interesting caveats to it.
Zach: I am not certain that there is a prohibition on a cannabis testing lab, on testing other agricultural products or other substances. I have not heard that, then again, we haven’t represented any labs in, you know, the eight years that that we’ve been around.
I’m unaware of any prohibition on labs testing other products. But, you know, there have been a lot of controversies around the testing labs over the last few years as far as fixing results or paying for, you know, your THC percentage and things like that. But no, I wasn’t aware of that prohibition.
Susan: Okay. Well, unfortunately, I think in any business you go, you’re going to find some people that are trying to bend the rules to, you know, make it easier, which we don’t promote that here.
Zach: I can’t disagree with you there. That’s true.
Susan: Yeah. So if you were going to make one change to the Calaveras County Cannabis code, that would benefit the farmers the most, what do you think it would be?
Zach: Oh, boy. Well, I don’t want to get in trouble with, the county or the tax base, but it would help the growers if we had, a lower tax rate, I think, you know, by and large, lower tax rate, would be huge.
You know, we’ve gotten the 60% reduction, that helps. But when you’re talking about supporting an industry, an industry that is a very significant tax base here, I think the board has done what they can. I think the board is under pressure, to hold, you know, cannabis businesses accountable.
Susan: Sure.
Zach: And, but I also think that there’s a perception, amongst some members of the general public that, you know, somehow the cannabis growers are getting over on the county, not following the rules, you know, making money hand over fist and keeping it all to themselves, which couldn’t be further from the truth.
The truth of of it is, is you know, most of these farms are family owned. You know, people are supporting workers. They’re paying, a wage that, you know, far exceeds the minimum wage that someone would earn. Say it like a McDonald’s. And they have a ton of overhead that traditional businesses don’t have to deal with IRS code to, significantly restricts the amount of tax deductions that a cannabis business can take.
You’ve got, you know, local taxes, on top of state taxes, on top of federal taxes without the benefit of these deductions, the cost of regulatory compliance is significant. And so it’s hard it’s a tough business to be in. And, you know, I think if I could pick one thing, it would say, I would say, you know, get rid of the tax.
But I know that’s, that’s a pipe dream. Not necessarily. A likely scenario.
Susan: So that’s okay. We can dream.
Zach: Yeah. We, you know, got the Badges going away, in January. So that’s that’s a definitely a win for the operators.
Susan: Absolutely. And a win for the county too, because we were actually spending money agreed to keep that program implemented.
Zach: And that was very surprising to see. And I think again kudos to the Board of Supervisors for making that policy decision that’s going to benefit both sides. I think when you have an open dialog, and, and a governing body that’s receptive not only to the needs of the community at large. And, you know, looking to protect the public, health and welfare, but also to protect the businesses, you know, the businesses are the ones that are that are given the employment and generating the tax revenue.
And they’ve stepped forward in full transparency since the registration process, you know, began in 2016 to be regulated, to be in the light and not have to look over their shoulder and, and, move in the underground. So I think we’re getting there. It’s been slow progress. There’s been bumps in the road for sure. But, you know, we continue working together and, keeping an open dialog and I think, you know, we can be successful.
Susan: I think. So, is there a payment plan if I can’t get my taxes paid on time? I have a payment plan. If I can’t pay my real estate, I have a payment plan. If I can’t pay my income taxes, no. But none. So in my opinion, that would be a really good step for the county to take.
Susan: I had this discussion with somebody and they go, well, it’s not a property tax. Like there’s no hard thing there that you’re taxing. But then I started thinking about it and went, yeah, but my income taxes, you know, I can get a payment plan on that. Yeah. It’s, you know, there’s nothing they can take away from me other than my life, my house and my.
Zach: Yeah, I know, unfortunately, Calaveras County is not unique as far as local jurisdictions. As far as the rigidity around the money that comes through the door, There should be a payment plan. And I think, you know, when you were talking about abandoned the tax and where we’re at now, that sounds like a pretty decent compromise. So maybe that’s something that’s coming down the pipe in 2025.
I can get behind that for sure.
Susan: All right. Okay. Let’s talk a little bit about our planning commission here in Calaveras County. We have an amazing planning commission. In my opinion. They’re very detail oriented. What advice would you give to somebody that had to go before the planning Commission for either an appeal or an AUP while you’re, you know, an EP or CP for a CP?
Zach: Sure, sure. Do your homework, know your project top to bottom, go out and talk to your neighbors. Talk to the people that may have concerns about your project. Talk to the people that may oppose your project, even if you can’t win them over and get them to support your project, at least you’re going to have an idea, hopefully, about what their concerns are.
And if, after, you know, attempting to address those concerns with those individuals directly, you would have the opportunity to address them upfront with the Planning Commission, explain why those concerns are either unwarranted or, can be mitigated or controlled through proactive steps that you’re going to take with your operation. I think having a good idea of what you’re going to come up against during that hearing, is paramount.
When you go in front of the Planning Commission, you know, you want to know that your project number one is going to get a recommendation of approval from staff that is worth its weight in gold. If you can’t get staff’s recommendation for approval based on their evaluation of your application, you got a huge, huge uphill battle and a very, very low chance of getting your project approved.
So that’s number one, you know, work very closely with staff. We have a great planning staff here in Calaveras County. I’ve had the pleasure of, working with Madeline, and a couple others in planning and they’re great. Right. Very communicative, very diligent as far as getting the information that they need to draw up their staff reports and, give a comprehensive presentation to the planning commissioners during those hearings.
And to the extent that planning commissioners are, willing to meet with applicants ahead of the hearing so that you can hear what their concerns are directly, and if you haven’t addressed those at the time that you’re able to meet with them, you go back, do some research and figure out, you know, how you’re going to either rectify the situation that’s causing those concerns or plan ahead to make sure that, you know, you can avoid, the negative aspects surrounding those concerns. Moving forward
Susan: sure. And especially I think if you’re going to buy a piece of property with the idea in mind, you’re going to have commercial cannabis. Talk to those neighbors first.
Zach: I think so, absolutely. Yeah. Talk to the neighbors. Get your environmental resources survey done. You know, have, and if you’re not working with an architect or an engineer, at least try and, you know, work with the draftsman, get those property boundaries, draw up your setbacks.
You know, you overlay. I mean, I’m giving some practical advice here. Okay. Get your environmental resources survey, determine where those environmental constraints are going to be, and then you know, within those setbacks and within those environmental constraints, you can start planning your project out. And, and, yeah, talk to those neighbors, you know, before you go in and spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on that property, especially if you if it’s going to be a cup.
Right, sure, and not a ministerial permit. And that’s the that’s the great thing about Calaveras County is that ministerial permit. They did a really good job upfront, with their environmental impact report, and adopting some mitigation measures and a process that was going to reasonably assure that cannabis operations that are compliant with the county code were not going to cause a disturbance to the community.
And certainly, you know, there’s cases where there’s violations by permitted farms. But for the most part, you know, the farms that, have been able to get up and running and have a couple of 2 or 3 years under their belt, you don’t see a lot of problems out of them, even with the market decline. So, Minister, go ministerial if you can,
Susan: Sure. Absolutely. I’m going to add one more. I’m going to say get a lawyer and I am going.
Zach: Can’t argue with that recommendation.
Zach: I’m just going to let people know the reason you’re on the show today is because I’ve been to every planning commission since 2012, every board meeting since 2012, and I have seen a lot of. Not so professional lawyers come through when it comes to cannabis.
And you are the one one of them that you come in, you’re prepared, you’re knowledgeable, you’re professional, and I have seen you stay very calm, collected in situations. Or I probably would have been throwing something at somebody.
Zach: Well, don’t you can if you want to do it on my behalf, go ahead. No, I’m just kidding. I appreciate the compliment.
You know, early on in 2016, this was new for everyone, right? The the quote unquote standard for care for the profession hadn’t been established yet. And so I was up front with the people that I started working with in the beginning of, you know, this is a this is going to be a learning curve for everyone involved.
But what I can assure you is that, you know, I’m going to be diligent about knowing the parameters of what it is that we’re venturing into, you know, and, and establishing an, a trust and a loyalty to the end goal and the process to where people can put their faith in you, put their investment in you sometimes, you know, put their life savings on the line in pursuit of going legit, of making that transition from, you know, the nonprofit, traditional side of the market over into the regulated space.
It was a leap of faith for me as a, as a career decision. And it was it was a big leap of faith for, you know, some of the pioneers in this industry that decided to get involved early on. And, you know, even now that are still deciding to get involved. Nothing was guaranteed. The time we started on this road, there were no local jurisdictions that, were accommodating commercial cannabis businesses.
And so the first step for us was, you know, down in the Valley engaging in policy reform, advocacy, working with local governments to get them to adopt regulations to give people an opportunity to do this legally. And so we’ve learned a lot, right? With every local jurisdiction, it has its own unique set of local regulations and rules to follow.
We’ve been fortunate that, you know, we’ve at this point, I think, had 40 plus new projects approved in ten different local jurisdictions. Right. You know, mostly between Stockton Merced, Calaveras and the East Bay. But we’re still learning, you know, part of the of what we focus on in my office is continue looking on, on ways that we can improve the service that we provide our clients, on ways that we can become more efficient.
And what it is that we do, you know, time is it’s is not a cliche. Time is money. The longer your project takes to get approved and the longer you’re you’re in the planning phase and not in the production phase and not in the sales phase, it’s just money out the door. And so we understand that. And, and I think humility is huge with anything that you’re involved with.
You know, I still won’t call myself an expert. Certainly, there were no experts in this in 2016. I’ll say, you know, I have probably more experience than 95% of the attorneys in California in this space. It’s because I’ve dedicated, my career and, you know, the efforts of my office exclusively to this as far as Drivon Consulting, which is my cannabis law firm.
Susan: Okay. So I think you hit on a couple of really important points. One is every local jurisdiction is different.
Zach: Correct.
Susan: So what you’re doing in Calaveras County, you may not be able to do in San Joaquin County.
Zach: Correct.
Susan: So I think it’s really important if you consult an attorney that you make sure they are versed in your local regulations.
That’s one, and the other point you made that I think is really relevant is that the landscape keeps changing. So this is still an area where there’s not. And you can correct me if I’m wrong, but I don’t think there’s a lot of case law, even today, that people can go back and look at. Okay, maybe maybe I’m wrong.
Zach: No, there’s not like an established doctrine or any long history of case law or case law being established just in these last few years.
Susan: Exactly.
Zach: You know, take in civil court, I think, you know, it takes an average of 2 or 2 and a half years, for a case to, to go to trial following a complaint, most of all civil cases get settled.
But, yeah, that litigation, you’re starting to see some of that come up, in different jurisdictions across California. And, to the extent that you know, either the operator or the local government or partners, have violated an agreement or an ordinance, that’s the right that every, you know, citizen and every business in California, at least when you’re in good standing, has is to take it to the courts and, and see where justice is going to prevail.
And so, you know, to your point, knowing those parameters, knowing those rules, being prudent and diligent about, you know, drafting up your agreements and knowing exactly what you’re in for in the beginning is, is huge. So you can avoid no one wants to no one wants to be in litigation. That’s not the time and money. And so I’ve done my best to keep my I mean, that’s my background is keeping people out of trouble to as much as I can.
But avoiding, you know, court. Now, when you got to go to court, when there is a grievance that is not going to be, settleable, between the parties, then, you know, you got you have to take it there. But yeah. No, no, what you’re getting into and do your research, it doesn’t it doesn’t take an attorney for you to do, you know, a quick Google search?
Cannabis regulations in x city or county, you know, you’re looking at property. Pick up the phone, call the planning department, see what the zoning is. Right. See? See if the type of cannabis business that that you want to have is allowed in that zone and in that property, find out what the sensitive use restrictions are.
Right. So we have setbacks from the adjacent property lines in Calaveras County, for instance, in other jurisdictions, you have to be a certain your property lines have to be a certain distance away from, say, a youth facility or a church, just as an example, or a school. Right. Not every local jurisdiction has those restrictions somehow. Have them.
Some don’t. Some are more extensive than others. And so those are the types of things that can, you know, blow you right out of the water before you even get started, as if, you know, you land on the wrong spot. It’s not zoned or setback appropriately for what you want to do. So, you know, do you do a little bit of research up front?If you start getting serious and, you know, you really feel that you’re committed to getting a project up and running and you have the resources to do so. I definitely would agree contact someone that has experience doing it. And how do we contact you? You can reach me. My office is in Stockton. You can reach us at (209) 636-4856.
You can email us licensing at Drivon Consulting.com. That’s Drivon Consulting.com. You can email me directly Zach Zach at Driven consulting.com. Look us up on the web driven consulting.com. We’re getting ready to relaunch all of our digital media and kind of do a refresh on, what we have going on. So yeah, definitely, excited to see what’s coming down the pipe in 2025 with new projects, new clients, and helping our existing clients stay in the game and, and helping to protect and advance their interests moving forward.
Susan: All right. So anything we haven’t talked about you think we ought to talk about today?
Zach: I think we covered some good ground. Yeah. I mean, like I said, plan, have a very, very strong command of your operations. Know who’s doing what, who’s who, has what roles and responsibilities for your project. And, you know, have your eye on the ball and make sure the ball doesn’t get dropped because it only takes once for, it to railroad your entire operation.
So I appreciate your time. Susan. Thanks for the opportunity to chat.
Susan: Oh, thank you for showing up today. I really appreciated talking to you, too. And thank you to our listeners. We hope you’ve enjoyed this episode, and I hope you will enjoy it again in the future. There is a website if you’d like to go to it. Calaveras Cannabis Dot farm, because we promote ecologically sound farming in Calaveras County.