You Tell Us: Should Sonoma County Limit Pot Dispensaries?

The Sonoma County Planning Commission voted Thursday in favor of an ordinance capping the number of marijuana dispensary licenses granted at nine facilities — a move which supporters say would reduce the amount of drug-related crime while still serving the population of medicinal users. 

The proposed ordinance essentially closes the market with the current six facilities and three facilities still maneuvering the permitting process, the Santa Rosa Press Democrat reported Thursay. Read the Press Democrat's full story here.

The Commission, who voted 4-1 in favor, will look at three more flexible options, limiting licenses by district, size, or "board discretion." According to the Press Democrat, "commissioners acknowledged it may not prevent an undue concentration of the outlets in some neighborhoods."

The rules takes effect in the unincorporated areas of Sonoma County. In 2010, the community was agitated when a medicinal facility attempted to open up a few blocks from a local teen center.

Medical marijuana advocates take issue with the license cap, claiming the rule would be discriminatory:

"They don't put a cap on liquor stores or pharmacies in this county," said Mary Pat Jacobs, spokeswoman for the advocacy group Sonoma Alliance for Medical Marijuana.

Jacobs said the group's stance has not changed with the new proposed cap of nine shops.

But, according to the Press Democrat, "a majority of supervisors" believe the restrictions to the 2006 medical marijuana ordinance are necessary to effectively govern the growing marijuana industry on the North Coast, which they correlate with a rise in violent and petty crime.

The nine facilities, which are each permitted 1,000 customers, would effectively serve Sonoma County's medicinal marijuana using population, estimated at 9,700 to 14,500 said Amy Wingfield Lyle, the county planner overseeing the proposal to the Press Democrat.

As reported by Patch in late October, currently there are five dispensaries with permits, and four more have applied for permits in the unincorporated area. There also are two dispensaries in Santa Rosa, and one each in Cotati and Sebastopol.

Rohnert Park, Petaluma, Cloverdale, Windsor and Healdsburg do not allow dispensaries.

In Rohnert Park, the city's ordinance, passed in 2007, states that "the allowance of medical marijuana dispensaries negatively impacts the health, safety, and welfare of the community, due to the associated potential for increases in illegal drug activity, illegal drug sales, robbery of persons leaving dispensaries, loitering around dispensaries, falsely obtained identification cards, and other increases in criminal activity."

The city also said "the operation of medical marijuana results in increased demands for police response, thereby compromising the Department of Public Safety’s ability to respond to other calls for service." The ordinance, however, "would not impact qualified patients’ rights to cultivate and possess medical marijuana for their own use."

Countywide, in October, supervisors said in addition to capping the number of dispensaries at nine, the first phase also includes proposing enhanced criminal penalties for unauthorized marijuana growing on public lands and on private lands without the landowner's permission.

Phase one also includes provisions for seeking a court order to force closure of any future unpermitted dispensaries. The proposed amendments to the zoning ordinance will be heard by the county planning commission before returning to the board of supervisors for final approval.

The regulation effort also addresses concerns about an increase of unauthorized marijuana growing operations not intended for medical marijuana patients.

Indoor marijuana grows violate building and zoning regulations, consume significant amounts of electricity, and are near schools or are in rural residential neighborhoods. The goal of the second phase, to be completed within six to eight months, is to relegate the growing of medical marijuana and finding ways the county can recover costs directly associated with the regulatory and enforcement efforts.

Regulations could include limiting the size of growing operations, including grows by collectives; setting space and electrical wattage limits on indoor grows; identifying "marijuana free" zones; monitoring crime and public nuisance statistics in the vicinity of grows and creating regulatory and enforcement fees to reimburse the county for its medical marijuana regulation programs.

It is estimated it will cost $250,000 for county staff to research, draft and develop ordinances and take any necessary legal action on the two phases of regulation. Several medical marijuana patients who spoke on the issue this afternoon said medical marijuana dispensaries must be conveniently located throughout the county because some patients are disabled or do not have transportation.

They also objected to a cap on the number of dispensaries. Supervisor Brown said county officials are aware some dispensaries provide delivery to the patients.

Supervisor Mike McGuire asked the county Permit and Resource Management Department to consider requiring dispensaries to adopt a "closed loop" system that ties a legal marijuana grow to the dispensary.

Supervisor Zane said dispensaries should publish their local, legitimate source of marijuana and agree to annual inspections by the Agricultural Commissioner's Office.

Supervisor David Rabbitt said there is often a connection between a dispensary and an illegal growing operation, and that the market for marijuana is expanding because of the dispensaries.

"It's not about medicine, it's about money and greed," Rabbitt said.