The city's Planning Commission on Wednesday will consider a new law that would regulate the dispensaries, lifting a ban in place since Wildomar became a city in 2008.
First, the commission must decide if dispensaries are appropriate for the city. If so, it must decide how and where they can operate.
City Attorney Julie Hayward-Biggs drafted regulations based on a law passed by the city of Laguna Woods, an Orange County retirement community.
In a report prepared for the meeting, Planning Director David Hogan said commissioners could accept the ordinance as is, reject it or modify it as they see fit.
For example, the draft would give the city administration power to issue permits to dispensaries. The commission could decide to make the process more onerous, requiring public hearings before a business can open.
The draft would allow dispensaries in commercial zones only. But, Hogan said in the report, the commission could decide to relegate the businesses to industrial zones only, or it could allow them in both commercial and industrial zones.
Commissioners must also decide how far the dispensaries should be from schools, parks and other places children are likely to be. The draft law calls for them to be at least 1,000 feet away.
The draft does not put a cap on the number dispensaries allowed in the city. It allows them to be open only from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. And it requires the businesses to have security cameras and to keep the tapes for at least two weeks in case police need them to investigate a crime.
All such regulations could be altered if the commission approves a new law.
The push to allow dispensaries began this spring, when a nonprofit marijuana collective, the Wildomar Patients Compassionate Group, opened a storefront location on Mission Trail. The collective's manager, William Sump, walked into City Hall and announced he would open the store, though city codes forbade it.
Wildomar's rules on medical marijuana were inherited from Riverside County when the city incorporated.
The collective's opening and subsequent quick closure sparked a response from local medical marijuana activists, who persuaded the council to consider allowing dispensaries.
In April, the council voted 4-1, with Mayor Bridgette Moore dissenting, to direct the city attorney to draft the new law. If the Planning Commission votes in favor of a new ordinance, the law would proceed to the City Council for approval.
Source: The Press-Enterprise
Posts
