A new business opportunity has opened up in San Luis Obispo for applicants who are ready to step into the cannabis industry.
The City of San Luis Obispo is now accepting applications for both competitive and non-competitive cannabis business permits this summer.
Applications cost over $5,000 for business owners looking to start up a dispensary.
There are a maximum of three retail storefront permits allowed in the city and two are already taken.
The current application period is for the third and final retail permit.
“Our cannabis program permits all license types, so that includes retail storefront, delivery, cultivation, test-and-laboratory, manufacturing,” said Alex Fuchs, City of San Luis Obispo’s Mobility Services Business Manager. “Most of them are non-competitive, meaning that theoretically there is an unlimited number of permits that are available, but retail storefront is competitive and is limited to three at any given time.”
SLOCAL Roots has been open for over 15 months and currently holds a commercial cannabis business operating permit from the City of San Luis Obispo.
The owner says the business has been thriving since opening day and they welcome locals and tourists who are interested in their products.
“We had to compete very hard to achieve our license, so with the city opening up another third license, we know that whoever the recipient is, that they're going to be a worthy applicant as the city holds a high standard,” said Austen Connella, SLOCAL Roots owner and CEO.
Every applicant is required to fulfill a community benefit agreement by either volunteering hourly or donating some of their profits to a local non-profit.
“Cannabis isn’t the big bad boogie man that everyone thought it once was and in reality, it has a lot to offer to the community,” Connella said. “We’re proud to be sponsors of a lot of local non-profits and to be a part of the community as a whole and that we’ve been embraced by the community as a whole in that level.”
All the cannabis and permit fees that are collected go toward the City of San Luis Obispo’s General Fund, which the city says helps provide funding for education, special enforcement, and other needs.
Applications for the commercial cannabis business permit are due on August 15.
The City of San Luis Obispo says that if an application does not meet their criteria, a reimbursement will be issued.
Click here for more information and to submit an application.
