Pomona, CA Cannabis Regulations: Dispensary Zoning (2026)

The Zoning and Development Code, adopted July 1, 2024, creates a Commercial Cannabis Permit Program Overlay District marked '-C' on the zoning map, divided into four sub-areas under Sec. a: SA1 and SA2 permit retail cannabis businesses only; SA3 permits cultivation, distribution, manufacturing, microbusiness and testing; SA4 permits cultivation, distribution, manufacturing and testing, but not retail or microbusiness. Sec. 1 sends operators to City Code Chapter 68 for the operating standards that apply inside those sub-areas. Under Code Sec. 68-3, commercial cultivation, manufacturing, processing, storage, laboratory testing, labeling, sale, delivery, distribution or transportation of cannabis is expressly prohibited citywide except as specifically authorized by Chapter 68, so a parcel outside SA1-SA4 cannot host a licensed cannabis business no matter its underlying base zoning.

Even inside an eligible sub-area, a business needs a City-issued commercial cannabis permit (Sec. 68-6(a)), which the city council caps by category through resolution (Sec. 68-7(a)). Winning a permit is competitive: applicants pass Phase One intake, Phase Two initial scoring (must reach at least 800 of 1,000 points to advance), Phase Three a noticed public meeting, and Phase Four final ranking, requiring a minimum 900 of 1,000 points (Sec. 68-9). Permits expire one year after issuance and must be renewed (Sec. 68-10), and are non-transferable to a new location or owner without city approval (Secs. 68-15 through 68-19).