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HomeMy WebLinkAboutItem 12c - Bureau of Cannabis Control Regulations, Industrial Facilities, and Marijuana Deliveries DATE: March 5, 2019 TO: Honorable Mayor and City Council FROM: Dominic Lazzaretto, City Manager By: Michael Bruckner, Assistant to the City Manager SUBJECT: REPORT, DISCUSSION AND DIRECTION REGARDING CANNABIS CONTROL REGULATIONS, INDUSTRIAL FACILITIES, AND MARIJUANA DELIVERIES Recommendation: Approve and Authorize Sending a Letter to the City of El Monte and Provide Direction Regarding Bureau of Cannabis Control Regulations SUMMARY At the February 5, 2019, City Council Meeting, Council Member Chandler requested support from the City Council to send a letter on behalf of the City of Arcadia to the City of El Monte regarding their recent decision to allow industrial-level marijuana growing facilities in the City of El Monte. This request was concurred by Counci l Members Beck and Amundson. In addition, Mayor Tay requested that the City Council discuss recently- adopted Bureau of Cannabis Control (the “Bureau”) regulations regarding the delivery of marijuana in all communities, regardless of whether they have individually banned such activities under Proposition 64. This request was concurred by Council Members Chandler and Amundson. Therefore, it is recommended that the City Council approve the draft letter, authorize the Mayor to submit it on behalf of the City, and provide direction to staff regarding Bureau of Cannabis Control regulations relating to marijuana deliveries in Arcadia. DISCUSSION The City of El Monte recently approved a 71,000 square foot industrial marijuana grow facility located at 4400 Temple City Blvd. in El Monte, directly adjacent to the corporate boundaries of the Cities of Temple City and Rosemead. The approved facility is near several residential neighborhoods and residents from neighboring cities – including Arcadia – have expressed concern that the environmental impacts to surrounding communities were not taken into consideration by the City of El Monte during the approval process. In addition, there are at least 10 more marijuana facilities in various Letter to City of El Monte Regarding Industrial Marijuana Facilities and Discussion on Bureau of Cannabis Control Regulations March 5, 2019 Page 2 of 2 stages of approval in the City of El Monte’s development review process, with the City’s stated goal of being an economic center of marijuana growing in the San Gabriel Valley. While Arcadia has a strong history of supporting local control and self-rule, residents fear that the proposed concentration of industrial marijuana uses may negatively impact the quality of life in Arcadia and have asked the City to intervene. Other cities have expressed similar concerns that the City of El Monte has not conducted a thorough impact analysis and necessary environmental reviews to ensure that surrounding communities are not adversely impacted by marijuana cultivation on an industrial scale. In fact, the Cities of Temple City and Rosemead have filed a lawsuit over the matter. Of particular concern are issues related to security, waste disposal, fumes, and the proper storage, use, and clean-up of hazardous materials associated with the growing process. While it is possible for the City to join into the lawsuit, the potential impacts to Arcadia are not as evident as the other communities; therefore, the cost of participating in such an action would not be warranted. If the City Council would like to express its concerns, a better course of action would be to submit a letter to the City of El Monte. The draft letter (Attachment 1) has been drafted to outline the potential issues that have been identified by residents, Council Members, and City staff. Under powers and authorities granted to cities under Proposition 64, the City of Arcadia has banned commercial and industrial marijuana uses within its corporate limits, including the prohibition of deliveries and mobile vending . While Proposition 64 specifically allowed cities to enact such bans, recent Bureau of Cannabis Control regulations allow state-licensed marijuana businesses to deliver anywhere in California regardless of local preference. The regulations violate the City’s ordinance in addition to undermining our local control. A growing number of cities are suing the state under the premise that the recently-adopted regulations violate the local control provisions included in Proposition 64. The Cities of Sonora and Newman have already filed lawsuits and other cities are considering joining or filing separate lawsuits under a similar premise. Recently, the League of CA Cities voted to support the lawsuits. While enforcement of marijuana delivery bans is difficult at best, the City should nevertheless protect its right to local control and to decide what is appropriate business to conduct within the City boundaries. Should the City Council wish to pursue a lawsuit in this matter, joining into a large scale effort with many communities sharing costs woul d be preferable to attempting to go alone. The cost of such a joint effort is unknown at this time, but an individual lawsuit could quickly reach into the hundreds of thousands of dollars. It is requested that the City Council provide direction on this issue. ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSIS The proposed action does not constitute a project under the California Environmental Quality Act (“CEQA”), and it can be seen with certainty that it will have no impact on the environment. Thus, this matter is exempt under CEQA. Letter to City of El Monte Regarding Industrial Marijuana Facilities and Discussion on Bureau of Cannabis Control Regulations March 5, 2019 Page 2 of 2 FISCAL IMPACT There is no impact to the General Fund for sending a letter to El Monte. Any individual lawsuit on either of these matters could have significant cost implications. A joint lawsuit with many cities statewide regarding cannabis deliveries would have unknown costs at this time, but most likely would be in the low tens of thousands of dollars. RECOMMENDATION It is recommended the City Council approve the draft letter to the City of El Monte, and authorize the Mayor to submit it on behalf of the City, and provide direction to staff regarding Bureau of Cannabis Control regulations relating to marijuana deliveries in Arcadia. Attachment: Draft Letter to the City of El Monte March 5, 2019 Mayor Andre Quintero City of El Monte 11333 Valley Boulevard El Monte, CA 91731 Re: Industrial Marijuana Facilities Dear Mayor Quintero, On behalf of the Arcadia City Council and the City of Arcadia, we are writing to express our concern regarding the City of El Monte’s decision to approve industrial-level marijuana grow facilities adjacent to residential neighborhoods. Particularly, we are also concerned about the impacts that approved and future industrial marijuana uses may have on the City of Arcadia. The proposed concentration of industrial marijuana uses may negatively impact the quality of life in Arcadia, and we encourage the City of El Monte to conduct a thorough impact analysis and necessary environmental reviews to ensure that Arcadians are not affected by these developments. Among the many issues associated with industrial-level marijuana grow facilities include security, waste disposal, fumes, and the proper storage, use, and clean-up of hazardous materials associated with the growing process. These impacts could expand exponentially with multiple facilities in a concentrated area; therefore, cumulative impacts should be thoroughly considered as part of this environmental review. While the City of Arcadia has prohibited all commercial and industrial marijuana uses within Arcadia’s corporate limits, we do understand and respect the right of each community to exercise local control and self-rule. However, in the spirit of cooperation, we would encourage the El Monte City Council to take into consideration the impacts your decisions have on surrounding communities who do not share El Monte’s vision related to this particular issue. We value the long-standing friendship between our respective communities where, we have partnered together to address difficult challenges. As such, we appreciate the opportunity to address our concerns regarding this important issue to our community. Sincerely, Sho Tay Mayor