Ross Zoning Code § 18.40 General Regulations

(a) Definitions. For purposes of this section, the following definitions shall apply, unless context clearly indicates otherwise. If a word is not defined in this section, the common and ordinary meaning of the word shall apply. All citations to state law shall refer to the act, statute, or regulation as may be amended from time to time.

“Cannabis” means all parts of the plant cannabis sativa linnaeus, cannabis indica, or cannabis ruderalis, whether growing or not; the seeds thereof; the resin, whether crude or purified, extracted from any part of the plant; and every compound, manufacture, salt, derivative, mixture, or preparation of the plant, its seeds, or resin. “Cannabis” also means the separated resin, whether crude or purified, obtained from marijuana, and any product containing marijuana. “Cannabis” includes cannabis that is used for medical, non-medical, or other purposes. For the purpose of this Section, “cannabis” does not mean (1) “industrial hemp” as defined by California Food and Agricultural Code Section 81000 or California Health and Safety Code Section 11018.5; or (2) the weight of any other ingredient combined with cannabis to prepare topical or oral administrations, food, drink, or other product.

“Cannabis concentrate” means manufactured cannabis that has undergone a process to concentrate one or more active cannabinoids, thereby increasing the product’s potency. Resin from granular tichomes from a cannabis plant is a concentrate.

“Cannabis products” means cannabis that has undergone a process whereby the plant material has been transformed into a concentrate, including but not limited to cannabis

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concentrate, or an edible or topical product containing cannabis or cannabis concentrate and other ingredients.

“Commercial cannabis activity” means the cultivation, possession, manufacture, processing, storing, laboratory testing, labeling, packaging, transportation, delivery or sale of cannabis or cannabis products for medical, non-medical, or any other purpose and includes the activities of any business licensed by the State or other government entity under Division 10 of the Business and Professions Code, or any provision of State law that regulates the licensing of cannabis businesses. “Commercial cannabis activity” does not include the cultivation, possession, storage, manufacturing, or transportation of cannabis by (1) a qualified patient for their personal medical use so long as the qualified patient does not provide, donate, sell or distribute cannabis to any other person; or by (2) a primary caregiver, exclusively for the personal medical purposes of no more than five specified qualified patients for whom they are the primary caregiver, but who does not receive remuneration for these activities except for compensation in full compliance with California Health and Safety Code section 11362.765.

“Commercial cannabis use” means the use of any property for commercial cannabis activity.

“Cultivation” means any activity involving the planting, growing, harvesting, drying, curing, grading, or trimming of cannabis.

“Delivery” means the commercial transfer of cannabis or cannabis products to a customer, and shall include the use by a retailer of any technology platform owned and controlled by the retailer.

“Distribution” means the procurement, sale, and transport of cannabis and cannabis products between entities licensed under Division 10 of the California Business and Professions Code.

“Fully enclosed and secure structure” means a building, greenhouse or other structure which has a complete roof enclosure supported by connecting walls extending from the ground to the roof, is secure against unauthorized entry, provides complete visual screening, is accessible only through one or more lockable doors, and is inaccessible to minors.

“Indoors” means within a fully enclosed and secure structure.

“Manufacture” means to compound, blend, extract, infuse, or otherwise make or prepare a cannabis product.

“MAUCRSA” means the Medicinal and Adult-Use Cannabis Regulation and Safety Act as codified in Division 10 of the California Business and Professions Code, as the same may be amended from time to time.

“Outdoors” means any location that is not within a fully enclosed and secure structure.

“Person” includes any individual, firm, co-partnership, joint venture, association, corporation, limited liability company, collective, cooperative, club, society, organization, nonprofit, estate, trust, business trust, receiver, syndicate, or any other group or combination acting as a unit, and the plural as well as the singular.

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“Primary caregiver” shall have the same meaning as is defined in California Health and Safety Code section 11362.7(d), as the same may be amended from time to time.

“Private residence” means a house, an apartment unit, a mobile home, or other similar dwelling that is lawfully used as a residence.

“Qualified patient” means a person who is entitled to the protections of California Health and Safety Code Section 11362.5

(b) Prohibitions.

(1) Commercial cannabis uses are expressly prohibited in all zones in the Town. No person shall establish, operate, maintain, conduct or allow commercial cannabis uses anywhere within the Town. The Town shall not approve any application for a building permit, conditional use permit, variance, or any other entitlement authorizing the establishment, operation, development, or construction of any commercial cannabis use.

(2) Outdoor cannabis cultivation is expressly prohibited in all zones in the Town. No person owning, renting, leasing, occupying, or having charge or possession of any parcel shall cause or allow such parcel to be used for cultivating cannabis outdoors.

(3) Indoor cannabis cultivation, including cultivation by a qualified patient and primary caregiver, is prohibited except in strict compliance with Section 18.40.210(c) below.

(c) Indoor cannabis cultivation. It is hereby declared to be a public nuisance for any person owning, leasing, occupying, or having charge or possession of any real property in the city to cause or allow such real property to be used for the cultivation of cannabis except in strict compliance with the requirements set forth below:

(1) Cannabis cultivation shall only occur indoors at a private residence, or inside an accessory structure located upon the grounds of a private residence.

(2) Only persons (21) years of age or older may cultivate cannabis. Any cannabis cultivation must comply with the requirements set forth in California Health and Safety Code sections 11362.1 and 11362.2.

(3) Cannabis cultivation is permitted only within fully enclosed and secure structures. Cultivation areas shall be secured by lock and key or other security device which prevents unauthorized entry and shall not be visible from a public right of way.

(4) Cannabis cultivation shall be limited to six (6) plants total, whether immature or mature, regardless of how many residents reside at the private residence.

(5) Cannabis cultivation, including any lighting, plumbing, or electrical components used for cultivation, shall comply with Title 15 (Buildings and Construction) of the Ross Municipal Code. Lighting shall not exceed 1,000 watts per light. The use of gas products (CO2, butane, etc.) or CO2 and Ozone generators for cannabis cultivation is prohibited. Any fully enclosed and secure structure or residence used for the cultivation of cannabis must have proper ventilation and shall not create a humidity or mold problem in violation of Title 15 or applicable state health and safety codes.

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(6) Cultivation shall not be conducted in a manner that produces light, glare, heat, noise, odor, or vibration that is or whose effect is either detrimental to public health, safety, or welfare or interferes with the reasonable enjoyment of life or property.

(7) The residential structure shall remain at all times a residence, with legal and functioning cooking, sleeping, and sanitation facilities with proper ingress and egress. These rooms shall not be used for cannabis cultivation where such cultivation will prevent their primary use for cooking of meals, sleeping, and bathing.

(8) Cultivation of cannabis shall not displace required off street parking, or violate any other provisions of the Ross Municipal Code.

(9) Written consent of the property owner must be obtained prior to the commencement of cultivation.

(d) Exceptions.

(1) The delivery of cannabis to a qualified patient or a primary caregiver from a business located outside the city and licensed under the MAUCRSA, or any other provision of law that permits State licenses for medical cannabis businesses, shall be permitted into the city.

(2) Nothing in this Section shall prohibit any person from transporting cannabis through the jurisdictional limits of the city for delivery or distribution to a person located outside the city, where such transport does not involve delivery or distribution within the jurisdictional limits of the city.

(3) Nothing in this Section shall prohibit any commercial marijuana activity that the Town is required by state law to permit within its jurisdiction pursuant to the MAUCRSA.

(4) Nothing in this Section shall prohibit a person 21 years of age or older from engaging in activities authorized by California Health and Safety Code Section 11362.1.

(e) Violation; penalty. In addition to any other enforcement permitted by this Chapter 18.64, the Town Attorney may bring a civil action for injunctive relief and civil penalties against any person or entity that violates this chapter. In any civil action brought pursuant to this section, a court of competent jurisdiction may award reasonable attorneys fees and costs to the prevailing party. Notwithstanding the penalties set forth in Chapter 1.04 of the Town Code, no provision of this Section authorizes a criminal prosecution, arrest or penalty inconsistent with or prohibited by Health and Safety Code Section 11362.71, et seq . or Section 11362.1, et seq ., as the same may be amended from time to time.

(f) Construction with state law. Nothing in this chapter is intended to conflict with the provisions of state law concerning the regulation of cannabis. In the event of a direct and express conflict between state law and any provision of this chapter, state law, as applicable, shall control. (Ord. 728 (part), 2025; Ord. 684 (part), 2017; Ord. 681 (part), 2017; Ord. 680 (part), 2016; Ord. 670 (part), 2016; Ord. 664 (part), 2015).

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