Ron Strider
Well-Known Member
Recreational marijuana is so popular in Hermosa Beach that voters there delivered the third-highest percentage of support in the county for Proposition 64, behind only Santa Monica and West Hollywood.
But unlike those cities to its north, which are readying permit processes for some recreational marijuana businesses, the Hermosa Beach City Council slammed the door this week on any such shops in the beach town, even those that might want to sell seeds and growing paraphernalia.
"We're interested in exercising our powers to the fullest extent," Mayor Justin Massey said at Tuesday's City Council meeting. "We can always relax it if we see it's working in other places."
Massey's sentiments are widely shared across the small cities of the South Bay, which have for years remained staunch holdouts to medical-marijuana sales.
So when the state begins issuing permits on Jan. 1 for recreational-marijuana businesses authorized under Proposition 64, many cities will be on the sidelines watching quietly while their neighbors profit from lucrative cultivation, manufacturing and distribution businesses.
The estimated $1 billion in tax revenue the state anticipates raking in from the new industry will largely go to public safety and youth-treatment programs. But cities that block marijuana sales would be left out of any revenue the state may otherwise distribute to cities.
'Let's wait'
Nearly 71 percent of Hermosa Beach voters approved recreational-marijuana sales, bested only by 75 percent of voters in Santa Monica and 83 percent in West Hollywood.
But Hermosa Beach City Attorney Michael Jenkins told council members their hesitation about approving marijuana businesses wasn't unusual.
"A number of cities have said: 'Let's wait and see how things pan out, let's institute a ban and maintain a status quo,' " Jenkins said. "If you don't do anything, the state will issue licenses" in the city.
Police Chief Sharon Papa cautioned that crimes are more likely to occur around marijuana dispensaries.
Councilman Jeff Duclos said he was hesitant about clearing the way for marijuana businesses because there's "no real road map (and) we don't want to exacerbate problems in terms of these dispensaries."
But he acknowledged the increasingly ubiquitous presence of the drug.
"If somebody wants medical marijuana, they can have it delivered to their home. So this isn't really an effective ban," Duclos said. "It seems really a difficult situation for any city to try to come up with reasonable effective policies when so much is unknown."
Indeed, Santa Monica is still weeding through the thorny issue and has delayed accepting permit applications for recreational sales until February.
Prohibitions abound
In the South Bay, cities that haven't already issued outright bans, such as Hawthorne, El Segundo and Redondo Beach, are in the process of doing so.
Rancho Palos Verdes is allowing indoor cultivation, beyond the six plants allowed for all state residents, to those who obtain a city permit.
In Torrance, where 52 percent of voters backed legalization of recreational marijuana, businesses that grow, sell and manufacture the products were banned last month.
Gardena and Inglewood are poised to soon ban recreational marijuana, as planning commissions in both cities recently recommended prohibitions. The Inglewood City Council will consider the issue on Sept. 26.
The municipal bans portend an increasing concentration of marijuana shops in parts of the South Bay governed by the city and county of Los Angeles. Recreational shops will be allowed there along with existing legal medical-marijuana businesses. But rules restrict them from being too close to one another or to schools, among other things.
Carson is holding community meetings to discuss the issue on Sept. 23 and Sept. 28.
City leaders are divided about whether to permit the businesses. But more than 64 percent of Carson voters approved a municipal tax of 18 percent of gross receipts on all cannabis-related businesses last year, as well as a $25-per-square-foot fee on space used for cultivation.
Hermosa Beach council members said they will likely take up discussions next year about allowing businesses.
"I'm confident (that), if we don't participate in the commercial trade of this activity, our residents will not have difficulty obtaining it legally," Massey said. "Should we reach a stage in the future where we think it works well and we want to revisit that, the council can do that."
News Moderator: Ron Strider 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: Despite wide support in town, Hermosa Beach bans commercial marijuana businesses
Author: Sandy Mazza
Contact: How to contact the Daily Breeze
Photo Credit: ANTHONY PLASCENCIA
Website: Daily Breeze: Local News, Sports, Entertainment
But unlike those cities to its north, which are readying permit processes for some recreational marijuana businesses, the Hermosa Beach City Council slammed the door this week on any such shops in the beach town, even those that might want to sell seeds and growing paraphernalia.
"We're interested in exercising our powers to the fullest extent," Mayor Justin Massey said at Tuesday's City Council meeting. "We can always relax it if we see it's working in other places."
Massey's sentiments are widely shared across the small cities of the South Bay, which have for years remained staunch holdouts to medical-marijuana sales.
So when the state begins issuing permits on Jan. 1 for recreational-marijuana businesses authorized under Proposition 64, many cities will be on the sidelines watching quietly while their neighbors profit from lucrative cultivation, manufacturing and distribution businesses.
The estimated $1 billion in tax revenue the state anticipates raking in from the new industry will largely go to public safety and youth-treatment programs. But cities that block marijuana sales would be left out of any revenue the state may otherwise distribute to cities.
'Let's wait'
Nearly 71 percent of Hermosa Beach voters approved recreational-marijuana sales, bested only by 75 percent of voters in Santa Monica and 83 percent in West Hollywood.
But Hermosa Beach City Attorney Michael Jenkins told council members their hesitation about approving marijuana businesses wasn't unusual.
"A number of cities have said: 'Let's wait and see how things pan out, let's institute a ban and maintain a status quo,' " Jenkins said. "If you don't do anything, the state will issue licenses" in the city.
Police Chief Sharon Papa cautioned that crimes are more likely to occur around marijuana dispensaries.
Councilman Jeff Duclos said he was hesitant about clearing the way for marijuana businesses because there's "no real road map (and) we don't want to exacerbate problems in terms of these dispensaries."
But he acknowledged the increasingly ubiquitous presence of the drug.
"If somebody wants medical marijuana, they can have it delivered to their home. So this isn't really an effective ban," Duclos said. "It seems really a difficult situation for any city to try to come up with reasonable effective policies when so much is unknown."
Indeed, Santa Monica is still weeding through the thorny issue and has delayed accepting permit applications for recreational sales until February.
Prohibitions abound
In the South Bay, cities that haven't already issued outright bans, such as Hawthorne, El Segundo and Redondo Beach, are in the process of doing so.
Rancho Palos Verdes is allowing indoor cultivation, beyond the six plants allowed for all state residents, to those who obtain a city permit.
In Torrance, where 52 percent of voters backed legalization of recreational marijuana, businesses that grow, sell and manufacture the products were banned last month.
Gardena and Inglewood are poised to soon ban recreational marijuana, as planning commissions in both cities recently recommended prohibitions. The Inglewood City Council will consider the issue on Sept. 26.
The municipal bans portend an increasing concentration of marijuana shops in parts of the South Bay governed by the city and county of Los Angeles. Recreational shops will be allowed there along with existing legal medical-marijuana businesses. But rules restrict them from being too close to one another or to schools, among other things.
Carson is holding community meetings to discuss the issue on Sept. 23 and Sept. 28.
City leaders are divided about whether to permit the businesses. But more than 64 percent of Carson voters approved a municipal tax of 18 percent of gross receipts on all cannabis-related businesses last year, as well as a $25-per-square-foot fee on space used for cultivation.
Hermosa Beach council members said they will likely take up discussions next year about allowing businesses.
"I'm confident (that), if we don't participate in the commercial trade of this activity, our residents will not have difficulty obtaining it legally," Massey said. "Should we reach a stage in the future where we think it works well and we want to revisit that, the council can do that."
News Moderator: Ron Strider 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: Despite wide support in town, Hermosa Beach bans commercial marijuana businesses
Author: Sandy Mazza
Contact: How to contact the Daily Breeze
Photo Credit: ANTHONY PLASCENCIA
Website: Daily Breeze: Local News, Sports, Entertainment
