Lakeport Planning Commission welcomes new members, discusses county microkitchen business pilot program
- Elizabeth Larson
- Posted On
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – The Lakeport Planning Commission held its first meeting of the new year on Wednesday evening, with the three new commissioners taking their oaths, new officers elected for the coming year and a discussion of a county pilot program to allow for microenterprise home kitchen operations.
At the start of the hour-and-a-half-long virtual meeting, City Clerk/Administrative Services Director Kelly Buendia administered the oath of office to Scott Barnett, Kurt Combs and Nathan Maxman, who the Lakeport City Council appointed to three vacant commission seats in December.
They join Mark Mitchell and Jeff Warrenburg, now in their first terms.
Warrenburg nominated Mitchell as chair, with Maxman seconding. Combs nominated Warrenburg as vice chair. The commission voted unanimously to approve both of those nominations.
Both Buendia and Community Development Director Jenni Byers then gave a presentation on the commission’s duties and responsibilities, including the requirements of the Brown Act.
Also on Wednesday, the commission discussed the new pilot program for microenterprise home kitchen operations that the Board of Supervisors approved in November under the auspices of AB 626.
Microenterprise home kitchen operations are home-based businesses that may prepare a maximum of 30 meals per day or 60 meals a week, with annual sales not to exceed $50,000.
The pilot runs from Jan. 4 to June 30, allows up to two permits per month and a maximum of two per supervisorial district. Lake County Environmental Health is the lead agency, with Byers noting that a city business permit will be required, along with landlord permission, and zoning and minor use permits.
City staff explained that Lake County Environmental Health will handle the health-related issues and inspections while the city will follow up on conditions related to parking and other requirements.
Byers said that AB 626 requires a local health department to act as the lead agency, so if the county chooses not to continue with the program after the pilot time period ends, the city wouldn’t continue with it either.
Associate Planner Dan Chance said they have had a member of the public come in to ask about the program. That individual was interested in producing cupcakes, a food product covered under the cottage kitchen law, which the city already allows.
Under that law, Chance said the city has granted home occupation permits over the last few years for those who want to bake cookies or make cakes for sale from their homes.
Maxman asked what kind of timeline Byers anticipated should staff work on creating city rules to allow the operations in the city. Byers said they could have something in place by March or April.
Maxman said he was concerned about the city not having something in place, and Byers explained that if the city has no rules of its own, the county could permit such operations in the city limits. However, Chance added, he didn’t think the county would do that without city input.
“We’re not looking to reinvent the wheel on anything,” said Byers, explaining that staff could look at the Lake County ordinance and utilize it. However, she said that based on the law, the city can’t have more restrictions in its ordinance than are included in the county’s.
Warrenberg moved to direct staff to prepare a minute order to initiate a text amendment to the Lakeport Zoning Ordinance to address microenterprise home kitchen operations and work with the county in order than the text amendment would be in effect prior to the end of the county pilot program.
Barnett seconded the motion, which the commission approved 5-0.
The commission will next meet on Feb. 10.
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