The URL can be used to link to this page

Home My WebLink AboutOrdinance - 2448 - Extend Temporary Medical Marijuana Moratorium .- . . ORDINANCE NO. 2448 AN UNCODIFIED INTERIM URGENCY ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF REDDING EXTENDING A TEMPORARY MORATORIUM ON THE ESTABLISHMENT OF MEDICAL MARIJUANA COOPERATIVES OR COLLECTIVES IN THE CITY FOR A PERIOD OF ONE HUNDRED AND EIGHTY DAYS TO ALLOW THE CITY COUNCIL TIME TO STUDY, CONSIDER AND ENACT ZONING REGULATIONS, AND DECLARING THE URGENCY THEREOF WHEREAS, in 1996 the voters of the State of California approved Proposition 215 which was codified as Health and Safety Code Section 11362.5, et seq., and entitled "The Compassionate Use Act of 1996" ("the Act"); and WHEREAS, the intent of the Act was to enable persons who are in need of marijuana for medical purposes to obtain and use it under limited, specific circumstances; and WHEREAS, on January I, 2004, Senate Bill 420 became effective to clarifY the scope of the Act and to allow cities and counties to adopt and enforce rules and regulations consistent with SB 420 and the Act; and WHEREAS, on June 6, 2005, in Gonzales v. Raich, 125 S. Ct. 2195 (2005), the United States Supreme Court found there to be no legally recognizable medical necessity exception under Federal Law to the prohibition of possession, use, manufacture or distribution of marijuana under federal law; and WHEREAS, in February 2009, the U.S. Attorney General stated that federal law enforcement officials would cease enforcement at California medical marijuana facilities; and WHEREAS, City staff has received inquiries nearly daily in the past sixty days from individuals as to the possibility of establishing medical marijuana dispensaries throughout the City, and staff is aware of the recent establishment of between ten and twenty new dispensaries, which mayor may not be as a result of the aforementioned lack of enforcement by federal officials; and WHEREAS, concerns have been raised by several community members regarding the lack of current regulations to address the increasing number of permit applications and the impact that a proliferation/overconcentration of medical marijuana dispensaries and production houses within the City may have on the community as a whole; and I ~ ..c:. "<) WHEREAS, citizens of Shasta County have a desire to receive adequate medical marijuana opportunities provided the facilities are designed and located to minimize the concerns described above; and '-/ . . WHEREAS, the City of Redding has proposed, but not yet fully adopted, rules and regulations specifically applicable to the establishment and operation of medical marijuana dispensaries, and the lack of such controls may lead to an establishment of dispensaries and the inability for the City to regulate these establishments in a manner that will protect the general public, homes and businesses adjacent and near such businesses, and the patients or clients of such establishments; and WHEREAS, in order to prevent a rush of additional new businesses prior to the enactment of permit and zoning restrictions, it is necessary to suspend the approval of medicinal marijuana dispensaries that may be in conflict with the development standards and regulations the City intends to implement within a reasonable time: and WHEREAS, it is necessary to regulate the cultivation of medical marijuana in a manner tht protects the health, safety, and welfare of homes and businesses that re adjacent and near such activity, by minimizing the potential for nuisances and security issues associated with marijuana cultivation. NOW, THEREFORE BE IT ORDAINED by the City Council of the City of Redding as follows: Section 1. The City Council finds and determines as follows: I. The above recitals are true and correct and are incorporated herein as if set forth in full and are relied upon independently by the City Council for its adoption ofthis urgency ordinance; and 2. Notice has been provided pursuant to California Government Code Section 65090 and a public hearing having been conducted, the City Council hereby extends the interim urgency ordinance pursuant to California Government Code Section 65858; and 3. For purposes of this ordinance, "medical marijuana cooperative or collective" means any for-profit or not-for-profit facility or location, whether permanent or temporary, where the owner(s) or operator(s) intends to or does possess and distribute marijuana for any purpose. A "medical marijuana dispensary" includes a marijuana club as described in People v. Peron (1997) 59 Cal.App.4th 1383, and further includes medical marijuana cooperatives. A "medical marijuana cooperative or collective" shall not include the following uses, as long as the location of such uses are otherwise regulated by the City's Municipal Code: a clinic licensed pursuant to Chapter I of Division 2 of the Health & Safety Code; a healthcare facility licensed pursuant to Chapter 2 of Division 2 of the Health & Safety Code; a residential care facility for persons with chronic life- threatening illnesses licensed pursuant to Chapter 3.01 of Division 2 of the Health & Safety Code; a residential care facility for the elderly licensed pursuant to Chapter 3.2 of Division 2 of the Health & Safety Code, a residential hospice; or a home health agency licensed pursuant to Chapter 8 of the Health & Safety Code, as long as any such use complies strictly with applicable law including, but not limited to, Health & Safety Code Section 11362.5 et seq.; and 2 lr". . . 4. This interim ordinance is urgently needed in that the establishment of, or the issuance or approval of, any permit, certificate of occupancy, or other entitlement for the legal establishment of a medical marijuana cooperative or collective in the City of Redding will result in an immediate and actual threat to public health, safety and welfare in that the Redding Municipal Code does not currently regulate the location and operation of medical marijuana collectives and cooperatives or the cultivation of marijuana and does not have a regulatory program in effect that will appropriately regulate the location, establishment and operation of medical marijuana collectives and cooperatives or the place and manner of the cultivation ofmarijuana in the City; and 5. There is no feasible alternative to enactment of this interim moratorium that will satisfactorily mitigate or avoid the previously identified impacts to the public health, safety and welfare with a less burdensome or restrictive effect; and 6. In order to ensure the effective implementation of the City's land use objectives and policies, an extension of the temporary moratorium on approval of additional medicinal marijuana cooperatives and collectives is necessary; and 7. This ordinance is not subject to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) pursuant to CEQA Guidelines Sections 15060(c)(2) (the activity will not result in a direct or reasonably foreseeable indirect physical change in the environment) and 15060(c)(3) (the activity is not a project as defined in Section 15378) (Title 14, of the California Code of Regulations) because it has no potential for resulting in physical change to the environment, directly or indirectly; it prevents changes in the environment pending the completion of the contemplated Municipal Code review. Section 2. Imposition of Moratorium. In accordance with Government Code Section 65858 et seq., for the period of this ordinance a medical marijuana cooperative or collective shall be considered a prohibited use in any zoning district of the City, even iflocated within an otherwise permitted use. No permits or authorizations, including but not limited to issuance of a business license, shall be approved or issued for the establishment of a medical marijuana dispensary while this ordinance is in effect. Section 3. Written Report. The staff report and public record accompanying Ordinance 2445 of the City of Redding shall serve to satisfY the requirement to describe the measures taken to alleviate the threat to public health, safety and welfare that led to the adoption of the interim urgency ordinance and this extension. Section 4. Severability If any provision of this ordinance or the applications thereof to any person or circumstances is held invalid, the remainder of the ordinance and the applications of such provision will remain in effect to the extent permitted by law. 3 J'.,....-. . . . Section 5. Effective Date and Term. This interim urgency ordinance shall take effect immediately upon its adoption by a four- fifths (4/5) vote of the City Council. This interim urgency ordinance shall continue in effect for one hundred and eighty (180) days from the date of its adoption or until the effective date of a zoning ordinance amending Title 18 of the Redding Municipal Code specifically addressing zoning restrictions for Medical Marijuana Collectives and Cooperatives, whichever occurs first. I HEREBY CERTIFY that the foregoing ordinance was introduced, read and adopted by the City Council at a regular meeting on the 1st day of December, 2009, by the following vote: AYES: NOES: ABSENT: ABSTAIN: COUNCIL MEMBERS: Bosetti, Dickerson, McArthur, Stegal , and Jones COUNCIL MEMBERS: None COUNCIL MEMBERS: None COUNCIL MEMBERS: None Attest: .:1 r; I r . I I" C Tr"'" . <'-' -) r" '" Form Approved: " ~~ RICHARD A. DUVERNAY, City " ..: '\.. II ""'\, "\ .... ~ " '. ~, ,-, '~, \ . ~( ~ \' 4