Cannabis License Applications

Cannabis Cultivation Business Licenses ("CCBL")

New applications and renewal applications must be applied for in Accela.

Cannabis Cultivation Regulations

Accela

Applicants and Licensees can sign on to the Citizen Access Portal through Accela and create their account.

The Accela Citizen Access Portal houses all existing Cannabis Cultivation Business Licenses ("CCBL") and is where one will apply for any new CCBLs with the county. The portal is also where applicants and licensees will upload all required documents.

Use Accela to:

  • Apply for a new CCBL
  • Renew an existing CCBL
  • Apply for a modification on an existing CCBL
  • Upload requested/required documents
  • Pay fees online
  • Check the status of your CCBL

Sign on to the Accela Citizen Access Portal

Accela Citizen Access Portal

Please note, for licensees with the State who already have an Accela account, you will need to make a new account for Mendocino's Accela portal. At this time there is not a system in place for linking your county license with your state license.

Know Your Zone Before Applying

Check your zone by following the steps on this guide: How to Find your Zone(DOCX, 743KB):

eTRAKiT

If your site is in one of the following zones, you cannot cultivate cannabis.

No cultivation in:

  • RL: Rangeland
  • FL: Forest Land
  • TP: Timber Production

Should your site address not populate, or your zoning code not be listed, please call the Assessor’s office to retrieve your zoning code. Mendocino County Assessor’s Office: (707) 234-6800

For Agents Trying to Link with Their Clients' Accounts

Agents and clients will both need to create accounts. A client will need to list their agent on their newly created account, along with the agent's email. The agent's email should match the email used in the creation of the agent's Accela account. The matching emails should automatically link client accounts to agent accounts. Please contact our office if this automation is failing at (707) 234-6680.

Accela How-Tos

Cannabis Districts

Mendocino County amended its cannabis regulations on December 4, 2018, to establish two new types of Combining Districts: Commercial Cannabis Accommodation Combining Districts (Opt-In Districts) are areas intended to support continued operations by existing growers, and Commercial Cannabis Prohibition Combining Districts (Opt-Out Districts) are areas where commercial cannabis operations would be restricted. Below are the Combining District maps.

Opt-In District Maps

Opt-Out District Maps

Cultivation License Types

The following CCBL types may be applied for and granted provided the applicant and the legal parcel (or legal parcels, subject to section 10A.17.070(D)(3)) that contains the cultivation site are determined to be in compliance with all applicable conditions of this Chapter and Mendocino County Code Chapter 20.242:

(1) "Type C" for small outdoor cultivation of cannabis without the use of artificial lighting not to exceed a maximum of two thousand five hundred (2,500) square feet of total plant canopy.

(2) "Type C-A" for small indoor cultivation using exclusively artificial lighting not to exceed a maximum two thousand five hundred (2,500) square feet of total plant canopy within a structure or structures.

(3) "Type C-B" for small mixed light cultivation using supplemental artificial lighting not to exceed a maximum of two thousand five hundred (2,500) square feet of total plant canopy.

(4) "Type 1" for medium outdoor cultivation of cannabis without the use of artificial lighting of two thousand five hundred one (2,501) to a maximum of five thousand (5,000) square feet of total plant canopy on one (1) legal parcel not less than five (5) acres in size.

(5) "Type 1A" for medium indoor cultivation using exclusively artificial lighting of two thousand five hundred one (2,501) to a maximum of five thousand (5,000) square feet of total plant canopy within a structure or structures.

(6) "Type 1B" for medium mixed light cultivation using supplemental artificial lighting of two thousand five hundred one (2,501) to a maximum of five thousand (5,000) square feet of total plant canopy on one (1) legal parcel not less than five (5) acres in size.

(7) "Type 2" for large outdoor cultivation of cannabis without the use of artificial lighting of five thousand one (5,001) to a maximum of 10,000 square feet of total plant canopy on one (1) legal parcel not less than ten (10) acres in size.

(8) "Type 2A" for large indoor cultivation using exclusively artificial lighting of five thousand one (5,001) to ten thousand (10,000) square feet of total plant canopy on one (1) legal parcel.

(9) "Type 2B" for mixed light cultivation using supplemental artificial lighting of five thousand one (5,001) to a maximum of ten thousand (10,000) square feet of total plant canopy on one (1) legal parcel not less than ten (10) acres in size.

(10) "Type 4" for the cultivation of cannabis nursery stock and/or seed production which shall not exceed a maximum of twenty-two thousand (22,000) square feet of total plant canopy on one (1) legal parcel. Seed production activities, if any, shall be described in the application for a Type 4 CCBL. The legal parcel shall not be less than five (5) acres in size, provided, however, that legal parcels in industrial zoning districts are not subject to this parcel size restriction. Any on-site sales of nursery products which were produced on and occur on a parcel within the Timberland Production, Rangeland or Forestland zoning districts shall be limited to CCBL Holders only.

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