Long Beach City Council to appoint new task force on medical marijuana

CJ Dablo
Staff Writer
At a study session on Feb. 10, the Long Beach City Council laid the groundwork to appoint a task force that will offer community input on a new draft of an ordinance that aims to regulate medical marijuana.
For years, city leaders have wrestled with numerous complications in their efforts to create regulations that will allow pot dispensaries and corresponding cultivation sites to legally open in Long Beach. One previous ordinance had to be repealed because a state appellate court determined that it is preempted by federal law. According to City Manager Pat West, Long Beach faced an estimated 34 lawsuits, and about half of these cases are still active. Public forums have been punctuated by angry exchanges from individuals both on and off the Council dais.
If an ordinance is eventually passed, the City already knows how to tax medical cannabis. Long Beach residents last year voted in favor of a measure that would allow the City to collect taxes from these businesses.
Several council members at the Feb. 10 meeting acknowledged the importance of forming a group that represents stakeholders concerned with medical-marijuana issues. They will be asked to review an ordinance that the Planning Commission has already submitted to the Council.
Last year, the Council had offered specific directives to the Planning Commission while it crafted a new ordinance. The Council had asked that no more than two businesses operate in each district. Like the previous medical-marijuana ordinance that had been repealed after the City lost its lawsuit, the Planning Commission’s version still prohibits these businesses from operating near parks and schools. However, the new ordinance includes other restrictions. The Commission recommended that dispensaries and cultivation sites could be established in industrial areas, however, only dispensaries— not cultivation sites— would be allowed to operate in specific areas named Community Automobile-Oriented Districts and Regional Highway Districts.
During the Feb. 10 meeting, Vice Mayor Suja Lowenthal urged the Council to place the Planning Commission’s ordinance on the agenda soon, explaining that the leaders “owe it to the community to take a next step.”
Mayor Robert Garcia agreed. He explained that the Council could take an entirely different direction with the ordinance as proposed by the Commission.
“But,” he added, “I think that the Council should make a decision on a responsible timeline so that people have an idea of where we’re going and that we have an idea of what the next step is because this is [an] evolving conversation.”
On Tuesday, Feb. 17, the Council will be officially voting on the resolution to establish a medical-marijuana task force with the understanding that each sitting councilmember will be able to name two members to the group. Once formed, the task force will be expected to meet quickly, since the Council has asked that the group provide input on the ordinance in April. The Council agreed to review the outstanding issues at that time before the ordinance is discussed.
There are a number of complicated issues and unanswered questions associated with medical marijuana that have not been addressed. At this week’s meeting, 3rd District Councilmember Suzie Price asked about the logistics of collecting taxes in cash if federal guidelines prohibit marijuana businesses from opening bank accounts. She requested more time to study the problems, citing deep concerns with public-safety resources.
“Our police department is not prepared for this policy change. Period. Done!” Price exclaimed. “I don’t care who here thinks it’s a great policy…They are not ready for this, and they won’t be ready for this until we have some opportunity to do analysis to determine whether or not the sales tax we expect to receive from these businesses will, in fact, cover the costs of enforcement, public safety and security. We don’t have enough information. This isn’t about just pushing something through. This is about thinking it through.”
Ninth District Councilmember Rex Richardson asked to see how the zoning map would change if additional buffer zones were added for childcare centers and libraries. He also noted that there many areas in north Long Beach that would allow dispensaries and cultivation sites if the ordinance is adopted.
The Council asked that at next Tuesday’s meeting the city manager also provide a memo summarizing the issues that were raised at the Feb. 10 study session. In March, he will be expected to address the issues in greater detail.
Adam Hijazi of the Long Beach Collective Association said in a statement to the Council on Feb. 10 that he is especially concerned with zoning. He explained that restricting businesses to primarily industrial areas would not make medical cannabis easily accessible to the disabled and elderly.
Diana Lejins said she is an advocate for the disabled and also represents a group of individuals who are concerned about the marijuana ordinance. (She is an occasional contributing photographer to the Signal Tribune.)
Lejins said in an interview with the Signal Tribune that she is thrilled that the City Council is creating a task force now. However, she said she is concerned that councilmembers may be tempted to name representatives to the group who “mirror their own point of view.” She added that she hopes to have balanced representation on the task force with individuals who can look at the issue objectively.
During the public-comment period, one man saved a few harsh words for the Council.
“Is it going to be another four-and-a-half years?” Dennis Gumm, a retired surgeon, asked, noting that residents have already said that they want medical marijuana and have even voted on a business tax.
“It’s just time to do it. You’re wasting time, folks,” he concluded, adding that there are more issues out there. “So please!buckle into the power of the people.” ß