The Santa Barbara County Southern Board of Architectural Review (SBAR) has tentatively approved construction of a 25,000-square-foot cannabis processing facility at 3561 Foothill Road, on the condition that the applicant develop a plan to beautify the public-facing side of the site.
The board voted 6-1 at its Sept. 20 meeting, with SBAR architect Valerie Froscher casting the dissenting vote.
“Frankly, it's in a terrible state,” said Robert Richards, a landscape architect who represents SBAR's District 3. “Find something that would be good for the neighbors who are concerned.”
The cannabis facility at 3561 Foothill Road, owned by Graham Farrar of G&K Farms and K&G Flowers, was submitted to the SBAR in January 2020. At the meeting, the commission asked Farrar to submit details of mechanical equipment and specifications for screening, colors, material palette and lighting.
Since 2020, the project has been slowly moving through the usual regulatory agencies after facing numerous complaints from the citizens group Concerned Carpinterians. The group, which has also filed numerous complaints about odors emanating from marijuana businesses in Carpinteria, has taken issue with the number of marijuana businesses between Via Real and Foothill Road.
Land use consultant Jay Higgins, representing Farrar, explained to the board the color and lighting plans for the greenhouse, referencing board comments made at the January 2020 meeting, which call for a darker green color on the outside and downward-facing lighting around the perimeter of the building.
“In terms of what we're looking at, I think it's fine as proposed,” said Chris Gilliland, a landscape architect with SBAR.
Board member John Vrutiak suggested the exterior of the greenhouse be painted a darker color to “soften the impact” on the surrounding landscape, and board member Richards also suggested planting trees and greenery around the building to create a more pleasant streetscape.
Higgins said it would be extremely difficult to plant enough greenery to block the view of the greenhouse, and planting trees that would block a building more than 20 feet tall would require a lot of water.
Mr Richards and other committee members compromised with Mr Higgins, telling the applicant to beautify the street frontage “as much as possible”.
At the Sept. 20 board meeting, some comments were made about the size of the project and potential odors, but those concerns fell outside the purview of SBAR, which primarily deals with aesthetic and material issues surrounding new properties and projects.
Concerned Carpinterian Jill Stasinos spoke during public comment, reiterating some of the group's concerns, including the size, the impact the structure would have on the public view and the potential impacts on wildlife.
Stasinos also said neighbors' concerns about odors at Farrar's other marijuana grow operations – which he listed as 5601 Casitas Pass Road, 3480 Via Real and 5601 Casitas Pass Road – have not been addressed.
“We have heard that Graham Farrar has agreed to install carbon filter cleaners in this new 25,000 square foot cannabis processing facility, but we question how we can trust him when there appears to be little to no odor control in place at this time,” Stasinos said. “Please allow Mr. Farrar to eliminate odors from his current cannabis operations before allowing him to operate his new cannabis processing plant.”
The Committee gave Mr. Higgins an opportunity to respond briefly to some of the comments, even though they were outside the SBAR's jurisdiction.
“The (processing) building has more in-depth odor control than we would have built into a greenhouse because the building is actually airtight,” said Higgins, who explained that most of the odor control technology, including door and window controls, is located on the second floor of the building.
“I don't support it, but it's a long way off,” Froscher said. “I feel for the residents of Carpinteria, who have been largely ignored while the marijuana business in Carpinteria has developed.”
