Department of Planning and Building Services Director Maurice Anderson gave a presentation to the board at its Aug. 10 meeting describing the ordinances and procedures used by L.A. to keep medical marijuana licenses regulated.
“In short, in L.A. County currently, medical marijuana dispensaries are regulated through a use permit process,” Andersen said. “They are highly regulated. There are strict prohibitions on where they can be, within distances to schools, churches, those sorts of things.”
More specifically, Andersen said a conditional use permit, business license and manager’s license is required to establish a dispensary in L.A. County. The county’s current ordinance also stipulates dispensaries have to be at least 1,000 feet from schools, playgrounds, parks, libraries, places of worship, child care facilities, youth hostels, youth camps, youth clubs and other similar uses.
Andersen added roughly more than a month ago, The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors went back and directed its staff to draft an ordinance that would effectively ban dispensaries in the county entirely.
Andersen explained how the city of L.A. approved an ordinance at the beginning of the year which severely cracked down on the nearly 1,000 dispensaries within the city limits. The ordinance limits the number and locations of medical marijuana dispensaries, aside from the ones that registered with L.A. before a 2007 moratorium. Those that were able to stay in business, however, they also have to stay away from the vicinity of schools and specific areas.
Andersen explained how the ordinance also capped the number of collectives within the city to 70, proportionally distributed via population density, and patients of those collectives were only allowed to use their respective collective.
Andersen reminded the board how six specific options had been presented by county staff to the board at its June 15 meeting. He said of the options presented, he assumed what the Lassen County Board of Supervisors wanted was an option similar to the way Los Angeles County was handling it, or adopting “a zoning ordinance that includes not only location restrictions on medical marijuana dispensaries and/or cultivation, but also operational conditions and a cap on the number of facilities within Lassen County jurisdiction.”
Andersen recommended the county allow staff to develop two types of ordinances for future reference, which included both the multiple regulations through zoning and business licenses and the outright ban of dispensaries.
The county has had two separate moratoriums on the establishment of medical marijuana dispensaries the unincorporated areas of Lassen County cultivation and in of medical marijuana since May 11. The moratoriums were scheduled to expire by June 25, but were both extended by 10 months and 15 days at the board’s June 15 meeting.
District 4 Supervisor Brian Dahle pointed out from what he’s seen, many counties throughout the state are looking at each other to see how the issue of medical marijuana regulation is being played. Andersen agreed about how many counties are patiently waiting to see who will take an initial step, to see both what options work and what options don’t.
District 3 Supervisor Lloyd Keefer said he wanted to know if the county decided to go with zoning regulation if the minimum 1,000 foot distance could be extended should the county adopt a similar ordinance to L.A. city.
“People don’t want these places in a residential area,” Keefer said. “It’s an issue of crime, it’s an issue of property value, as well as proximity to children. I want to know if we can increase the distance from a dispensary.”
District 4 Supervisor Brian Dahle added there wasn’t a lot of open space in L.A. either.
Keefer said while the 1,000-foot distance isn’t a major issue for an area as heavily populated as L.A., a 1,000-foot distance may be too small for a more rural environment.
Dennis Hinze was on hand during the public comment period to give a brief update on the general subject of medical marijuana, including recent studies and decisions on how it should be classified as a form of medication.
“After 70 years, (The American Medical Association) came around and accepted medical marijuana as a reality,” Hinze said. “And it called for the removal of marijuana from schedule 1 controlled substances.”
Hinze explained how AMA schedule 1 substances are considered to have no medicinal value. He added the AMA had also called for new studies and research on the subject. He added that in some circumstances with veterans and their coverage under the Veterans Association, there were instances where veterans were denied access to other medications because they were using medical marijuana.
Over the last four months, however, Hinze said the VA has stopped limiting patients’ medications.
“I would just like to remind you guys about this burgeoning industry as you try to regulate it,” Hinze said.
Californians for Safe Access Collective in Susanville owner Tim Ziegler said he had business in Los Angeles in regards to medical marijuana, and he was unaware of any of the licensing and the zoning down there. Ziegler said all of the people who were in the industry as it was being shut down in the city of L.A. were essentially moving to out to L.A. County.
Ziegler then appealed to the board by offering his help in writing regulations.
“Here’s my proposal,” Ziegler said. “I know this industry. I’m up on the ordinances statewide, what’s working, what’s not, what lawsuits are pending, who’s won, who’s lost.
“I would love to help write regulations here that work for this county. You can put a ban in; state law prempts local law. It’s here, and it’s here to stay. So lets regulate it, lets make it where communities can live with it, and those of us who produce it can pay our share and help in these fiscal problems. I don’t want to see you guys have to spend big legal money, and doing it wrong, that’s what it’s going to entail.”
Andersen was eventually directed to follow the staff recommendation of drafting two separate ordinances for the board, one for multiple regulations and one for an outright ban. Andersen said he would bring both ordinances to the board in the near future for them to go over and decide which one fits the county better.
Source: Lassen County Times
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