Ron Strider
Well-Known Member
The furor over whether to allow a casino within city limits died down when council voted in the affirmative, but a controversial new issue has arisen. Should Kern County (and eventually the city of Ridgecrest) ban commercial cannabis businesses or allow, regulate and tax them?
Whatever the county and the city decide, people will still have the right to use medical marijuana (if 18 or over and holding a medical marijuana card) and recreational marijuana (if 21 or over). After Jan. 1, they will be able to purchase it legally in areas of California that have decided to allow for commercial retail sales. Kern County and Ridgecrest are in the process of deciding if they will be among those areas.
As currently written, the Kern County ban ordinance would allow the 22 dispensaries that are currently operating prior to a 2016 moratorium in the county to have a year to wind everything down. All other dispensaries operating illegally in the county would be required to shut down immediately.
City staff supports county ban, but will council agree?
When the city council meets tonight, one of the topics they will take on is whether to send a letter to Kern County supporting a ban on commercial marijuana cultivation and sales in unincorporated areas of the county. Proposition 64 legalized possession of less than one ounce for personal recreational use for adults 21 and over, as well cultivation for personal use. However, it also gave local governments the options of either banning cannabis businesses or allowing, regulating and taxing them.
Kern County is weighing two options: banning all commercial cannabis activities (Option A) or regulating them (Option B). The decision is likely to be made by the Board of Supervisors in October or November. City staff is recommending council support Option A, banning all cannabis production, sale and products and send a letter to that effect to the Kern County Planning Commission.
According to a staff report submitted by acting Ridgecrest Police Chief Jed McLaughlin, staff believes allowing and regulating marijuana could lead to increased violent crime in the area; easier access to marijuana by area youth; easier access to marijuana by the motoring public, leading to the possibility of more DUIs; potential negative impacts on the area's groundwater supply and power grid; and lack of revenue to mitigate these problems.
Specifically, the staff report cites concerns over potential increased cost to area law enforcement to deal with issues related to commercial cultivation and retail sales, as well as concerns over law enforcement's ability to do so.
"Cannabis cultivation, production, and sales is primarily a 'cash and carry' business. Due to issues relating to banking, a large number of marijuana dispensaries and stores do not use standard banking practices. Discussions with investigators with the California Narcotics Officers Association have shown a higher propensity of robberies and violent crimes at dispensaries and marijuana cultivation sites in Northern California . . . Due to the current economic climate in Kern County, law enforcement resources in the Indian Wells Valley are spread extremely thin. Increased crime to our City and the outlying areas is expected if commercial marijuana businesses are allowed to operate. This will have a significant impact to the City of Ridgecrest's ability to provide police services to our residents as well as the Kern County Sheriff's Office ability to provide adequate law enforcement services to the county residents," according to the report.
The two-page staff report also cites numerous statistics, purportedly showing the negative impacts of regulated marijuana. According to the report, these range from increased crimes, including car thefts and murder; an increase in a local "black market;" increases in traffic deaths; and increases in emergency room admissions and poison control services in areas that have legalized marijuana.
City Manager Ron Strand supports ban
Interim City Manager and former Ridgecrest Chief of Police Ron Strand sat down with the Daily Independent Tuesday to talk about the issue.
Strand said the reasons for recommending a ban are numerous. First off, marijuana use remains a federal crime and is thus forbidden for employees of the area's number one employer, the base. Strand said numerous employers in the area also have similar policies.
″[When] major employers have restrictions against marijuana usage it doesn't make any sense bringing marijuana into the valley," he said.
Strand said that the marijuana industry also causes other problems.
"There are a lot of other side issues on top of that that make it a business that you really don't want within your community.," Strand said. "You don't have a whole lot of businesses that have a significant amount of cash on hand. But with the marijuana business you will have a significant amount of cash on hand, which makes it very prone to robberies. As well as, you have a product that once it leaves the premises its very difficult to identify where it came from."
He added that whatever the county and ultimately the city decide, adults will still be able to use marijuana for medical and recreational use, as well as grow their own.
"On the other hand, [adult] people still have the ability based upon the law to grow their own marijuana. They still have the ability to give it amongst themselves," Strand said. "So we are not stopping people from that aspect of it. They can go to other areas after Jan. 1 to buy it commercially. But it just doesn't seem to fit our community to be able to have commercial retail sales within the community."
Dispensary owner disagrees
Self-described "Legal" Kern County dispensary owner Anthony Espindola, not surprisingly, does not agree. Espindola sent out an emailed letter addressed to citizens and the media late Tuesday afternoon.
In it, Espindola questions the validity of many of the specific statistics quoted in the city's staff report. According to his letter, the following conditions are frequently treated with cannabis: cancer, Crohn's disease, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson's disease, seizure disorders, post-traumatic stress disorder and chronic pain. In his letter, he argues that banning all sales (medical and recreational) would place an undue burden on people using marijuana medically, including the disabled population, senior citizens, veterans and cancer patients.
"Our Ridgecrest seniors and disabled, or a vet combating PTSD, will have to drive over 120 [m]iles to get safe and affordable access to their medicine. Some of them are economically unable to afford to make this weekly or [bi-weekly] drive, not to mention to added thousands of cars that will be on the road in and out of town," he wrote.
Espindola also argued that restricting access for legal users could increase a black market, ensuring that the 'Street dealers' [that] will not only have the money for all the weapons and ammo they want, plus high cost attorneys, that the county itself can't afford."
Council's decision tonight will be only on whether to write a letter to the county. According to Strand, however, the topic is likely to be back in two weeks when council will be asked if they want to modify the city's municipal code to ban marijuana for commercial retail sales within city limits.
"We are going to come back and do our version of this," Strand said.
"We have currently banned sales of medical marijuana and commercial cultivation of medical marijuana within the city. We have to go back and update the actual commercial and cultivation [sections] for recreational [use]," Strand said.
The ultimate decision to approve a municipal code update, of course, will rest with the city council. The Daily Independent will provide updates on this topic as they become available.
News Moderator: Ron Strider 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: Marijuana hot topic at council meeting tonight - News - Ridgecrest Daily Independent - Ridgecrest, CA - Ridgecrest, CA
Author: Jessica Weston
Contact: Contact - Ridgecrest, CA - Ridgecrest Daily Independent - Ridgecrest, CA
Photo Credit: Getty Images
Website: Ridgecrest Daily Independent - Ridgecrest, CA: Local & World News, Sports & Entertainment in Ridgecrest, CA
Whatever the county and the city decide, people will still have the right to use medical marijuana (if 18 or over and holding a medical marijuana card) and recreational marijuana (if 21 or over). After Jan. 1, they will be able to purchase it legally in areas of California that have decided to allow for commercial retail sales. Kern County and Ridgecrest are in the process of deciding if they will be among those areas.
As currently written, the Kern County ban ordinance would allow the 22 dispensaries that are currently operating prior to a 2016 moratorium in the county to have a year to wind everything down. All other dispensaries operating illegally in the county would be required to shut down immediately.
City staff supports county ban, but will council agree?
When the city council meets tonight, one of the topics they will take on is whether to send a letter to Kern County supporting a ban on commercial marijuana cultivation and sales in unincorporated areas of the county. Proposition 64 legalized possession of less than one ounce for personal recreational use for adults 21 and over, as well cultivation for personal use. However, it also gave local governments the options of either banning cannabis businesses or allowing, regulating and taxing them.
Kern County is weighing two options: banning all commercial cannabis activities (Option A) or regulating them (Option B). The decision is likely to be made by the Board of Supervisors in October or November. City staff is recommending council support Option A, banning all cannabis production, sale and products and send a letter to that effect to the Kern County Planning Commission.
According to a staff report submitted by acting Ridgecrest Police Chief Jed McLaughlin, staff believes allowing and regulating marijuana could lead to increased violent crime in the area; easier access to marijuana by area youth; easier access to marijuana by the motoring public, leading to the possibility of more DUIs; potential negative impacts on the area's groundwater supply and power grid; and lack of revenue to mitigate these problems.
Specifically, the staff report cites concerns over potential increased cost to area law enforcement to deal with issues related to commercial cultivation and retail sales, as well as concerns over law enforcement's ability to do so.
"Cannabis cultivation, production, and sales is primarily a 'cash and carry' business. Due to issues relating to banking, a large number of marijuana dispensaries and stores do not use standard banking practices. Discussions with investigators with the California Narcotics Officers Association have shown a higher propensity of robberies and violent crimes at dispensaries and marijuana cultivation sites in Northern California . . . Due to the current economic climate in Kern County, law enforcement resources in the Indian Wells Valley are spread extremely thin. Increased crime to our City and the outlying areas is expected if commercial marijuana businesses are allowed to operate. This will have a significant impact to the City of Ridgecrest's ability to provide police services to our residents as well as the Kern County Sheriff's Office ability to provide adequate law enforcement services to the county residents," according to the report.
The two-page staff report also cites numerous statistics, purportedly showing the negative impacts of regulated marijuana. According to the report, these range from increased crimes, including car thefts and murder; an increase in a local "black market;" increases in traffic deaths; and increases in emergency room admissions and poison control services in areas that have legalized marijuana.
City Manager Ron Strand supports ban
Interim City Manager and former Ridgecrest Chief of Police Ron Strand sat down with the Daily Independent Tuesday to talk about the issue.
Strand said the reasons for recommending a ban are numerous. First off, marijuana use remains a federal crime and is thus forbidden for employees of the area's number one employer, the base. Strand said numerous employers in the area also have similar policies.
″[When] major employers have restrictions against marijuana usage it doesn't make any sense bringing marijuana into the valley," he said.
Strand said that the marijuana industry also causes other problems.
"There are a lot of other side issues on top of that that make it a business that you really don't want within your community.," Strand said. "You don't have a whole lot of businesses that have a significant amount of cash on hand. But with the marijuana business you will have a significant amount of cash on hand, which makes it very prone to robberies. As well as, you have a product that once it leaves the premises its very difficult to identify where it came from."
He added that whatever the county and ultimately the city decide, adults will still be able to use marijuana for medical and recreational use, as well as grow their own.
"On the other hand, [adult] people still have the ability based upon the law to grow their own marijuana. They still have the ability to give it amongst themselves," Strand said. "So we are not stopping people from that aspect of it. They can go to other areas after Jan. 1 to buy it commercially. But it just doesn't seem to fit our community to be able to have commercial retail sales within the community."
Dispensary owner disagrees
Self-described "Legal" Kern County dispensary owner Anthony Espindola, not surprisingly, does not agree. Espindola sent out an emailed letter addressed to citizens and the media late Tuesday afternoon.
In it, Espindola questions the validity of many of the specific statistics quoted in the city's staff report. According to his letter, the following conditions are frequently treated with cannabis: cancer, Crohn's disease, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson's disease, seizure disorders, post-traumatic stress disorder and chronic pain. In his letter, he argues that banning all sales (medical and recreational) would place an undue burden on people using marijuana medically, including the disabled population, senior citizens, veterans and cancer patients.
"Our Ridgecrest seniors and disabled, or a vet combating PTSD, will have to drive over 120 [m]iles to get safe and affordable access to their medicine. Some of them are economically unable to afford to make this weekly or [bi-weekly] drive, not to mention to added thousands of cars that will be on the road in and out of town," he wrote.
Espindola also argued that restricting access for legal users could increase a black market, ensuring that the 'Street dealers' [that] will not only have the money for all the weapons and ammo they want, plus high cost attorneys, that the county itself can't afford."
Council's decision tonight will be only on whether to write a letter to the county. According to Strand, however, the topic is likely to be back in two weeks when council will be asked if they want to modify the city's municipal code to ban marijuana for commercial retail sales within city limits.
"We are going to come back and do our version of this," Strand said.
"We have currently banned sales of medical marijuana and commercial cultivation of medical marijuana within the city. We have to go back and update the actual commercial and cultivation [sections] for recreational [use]," Strand said.
The ultimate decision to approve a municipal code update, of course, will rest with the city council. The Daily Independent will provide updates on this topic as they become available.
News Moderator: Ron Strider 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: Marijuana hot topic at council meeting tonight - News - Ridgecrest Daily Independent - Ridgecrest, CA - Ridgecrest, CA
Author: Jessica Weston
Contact: Contact - Ridgecrest, CA - Ridgecrest Daily Independent - Ridgecrest, CA
Photo Credit: Getty Images
Website: Ridgecrest Daily Independent - Ridgecrest, CA: Local & World News, Sports & Entertainment in Ridgecrest, CA