JCCrandall, LLC v. County of Santa Barbara

FACTS

Santa Rita Holdings, Inc. applied to the County of Santa Barbara (County) for a CUP to cultivate cannabis. The cultivation would occur on 2.54 acres owned by Kim Hughes, as trustee of the Hughes Land Holding Trust (Hughes). Hughes consented to the cannabis cultivation. The cultivation project (Project) site is zoned for agriculture. Under the County’s Land Use and Development Code (LUDC), a CUP is necessary for cannabis cultivation. The issuance of a CUP requires that the County find streets and highways are adequate for the proposed use. An easement for ingress and egress across land owned by JCCrandall, LLC (JCCrandall) serves the Hughes parcel. The easement is the only access to the Hughes parcel. The easement was created by deed in 1998.

1 JCCrandall, LLC’s request for judicial notice, filed

September 6, 2024, is denied.

2 County of Santa Barbara’s motion to dismiss appeal as

moot, filed on December 19, 2024, is denied.

2 The easement is approximately one-half mile long. The road that runs over the easement is unpaved and approximately 12 feet wide. The County’s fire department and public works department determined that the road was adequate to serve the Project.…