Project 8 Winery application goes before Board of Supervisors on June 20

Published May 23, 2023

The Placer County Board of Supervisors has added a third meeting to its calendar in June to consider the proposed Project 8 Winery project, located in Penryn, which will include time for public comment. 
At the June 20 meeting, the board will receive a staff presentation explaining the project, environmental report findings and information on a zoning text amendment and conditional use permit to allow for a full-production large winery, including wine production facilities, a tasting room and accessory restaurant within a 75-foot- tall structure, and an underground wine cave network. 

The board scheduled a separate date solely for the Project 8 Winery project in anticipation of considerable public comments on the request. 

In April, the Planning Commission voted to recommend approval of the Project 8 Winery project to the Board of Supervisors. The commission cast three votes on the entitlement package for the winery, voting 6-1 to recommend certification of the environmental impact report and adoption of the zoning text amendment with modifications.   

The recommended modifications to the zoning text included limiting the height exceptions to large wineries that would produce over 20,000 cases a year on large parcels, specifically over 20 acres. The third vote was 5-2 to recommend approval of the conditional use permit allowing for the winery.   

The proposed project from applicant BEM Inc. (representing Lecavalier Cellars) would develop a full-production winery, producing 50,000 cases of wine annually on 17.96 acres of a 44-acre parcel at 7615 Callison Road in Penryn.  

The Board of Supervisors meeting will begin at 9 a.m. on June 20 at the Community Development Resource Agency’s Planning Commission Chambers, 3091 County Center Drive, Auburn, CA 95603. The public is invited to attend in person or watch online. Details on how to attend and comment via Zoom can be found here.