Pot cultivation facility opening behind ‘Desert Ice Rink’
A marijuana cultivation facility will be built behind the Coachella Valley’s only full-time ice skating rink.
Anthony Liu, the owner of ‘Desert Ice Rink in Cathedral City, received a cannabis license in September for his company, Bing Solutions LLC. He later received a conditional use permit from the city’s planning commission in February for a cannabis cultivation facility at 68-600 Perez Road, Chris Parman, communication manager for Cathedral City confirmed to KESQ & CBS Local 2.
This comes less than a month after ‘Desert Ice Castle’ filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy, which Liu confirmed was related to a divorce. Both Liu and the city have said the ice rink will continue to operate on a “business as usual” status.
Read: Desert Ice Castle owner responds to bankruptcy filing
Parman said that although the facility shares the same address as the ice rink, it will be built in the rear area of the property, not inside the ice rink.
“The property is quite large and they plan to build a secondary building on site,” Parman said.
Parman also confirmed that the facility will not be a retail center.
According to the plans provided to KESQ & CBS Local 2 by the city, the facility will be two-stories tall and nearly 24,000 square feet. The facility will be constructed in the parking lot in the back, which is currently covered by a tan fence. It will be separated from the ice skating rink by a more permanent wall and landscaping.
Some are concerned about the location of the facility.
“I think that sounds very, very odd when it’s in such close proximity to a children’s event,” one local resident said.
“A lot of concern I guess, especially for the youth, young kids and parents that are going to take their kids there,” said Alicia Garcia, a Cathedral City resident.
Parman says the ice rink does not qualify as a youth center by law or city ordinance.
“They serve everyone, adults- young and old. seniors all the way down to toddlers,” Parman said.
He also said residents shouldn’t worry about the smell.
“When it comes to odor, the nice thing is that this building will be coming up from scratch and we’ve realized that newer buildings, it’s much easier to control the odor,” Parman said.
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