Needles, CA: At last Tuesday’s Needles City Council Meeting, the City Council got to hear the 1st Reading of the medical marijuana drafted ordinance.

Item #1 related to medical marijuana collectives/ cooperatives (1st Reading) on the Needles City Council Meeting agenda from Tuesday, September 27th, 2011 says:
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“Public hearing noticed to consider all evidence and testimony for or against modification of city code to allow the establishment, regulation, and taxation of medical marijuana collectives/ cooperatives.”

(News Alert!!!: Link to agenda not posted at this time due to technical problems with program at the City of Needles. This page may be updated when link to agenda is posted.)
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- Some Background Information on this Item:

On July 12th, 2011 City Council requested that Medical Marijuana Ad-Hoc Committee be formed to review and make recommendations on alternatives in allowing for the dispensing of Medical Marijuana to patients with doctor recommendations.

The Medical Marijuana Ad-Hoc Committee comprised of Needles Councilperson: Linda Kidd, City of Needles Staff Member: Cindy Semione, Needles City Attorney: John Pinkney, Needles Planning Commissioner: Robert McDaniel, and Community Member: J.J. Greable have met weekly to review the Palm Springs, CA Ordinance and consider its adaptation for use in the City of Needles.

The proposed procedure is outlined in Attachment 1, which was created to provide staff and community members, with information explaining the process.

The Proposed Ordinance allows the establishment of no more then two medical marijuana cooperatives/ collectives in the City of needles, in all three of the commercial zones as well as the two manufacturing zones. The Ordinance also regulates delivery service and only allows the delivery of medical cannabis to be provided by those with a Regulatory Permit and only until 9pm PT.

The approval process will utilize a new entitlement permit, referred to as a “Regulatory Permit”, with the Needles City Manager or designee providing the review of application requirements. The fees for the regulatory permit are based on the quantity of members a collective/ cooperative has, beginning at $10,000 for a collective/ cooperative with 3-500 members; beginning at $20,000 with 501-1000 members, etc. This fee is an annual non-refundable fee, intended to ensure that appropriate funds are available to cover all projected expenses for the application review period, as well as ongoing support for inspections, record reviews, code compliance, etc. (Attachment 3). The Ordinance approves a regulatory permit for a permit for a period of 2 years, with no assurance of renewal.

The process requires completion of an application, with significant review planned for all elements of the proposed project, including background checks on volunteers/ employees/ staff, proposed security measures, site layouts, hours of operations, etc. Upon confirmation by the Needles City Manager that the application review process is completed without any issues, the project moves to the allotment process, with the application and information being provided to Needles City Council to make a determination on whether to allow or deny the applicant’s application for a Regulatory Permit.

The Ordinance identifies criteria for permit denial. If the project is denied, the applicant can file an appeal, with a $3,000 deposit; the appeal goes to the Needles Planning Commission for a recommendation to Needles City Council.

If the project is approved to receive a regulatory permit, fees are paid and the “Covenant” document executed. The “Covenant” document will include all of the “Conditions” of the project, and will be recorded at the County of San Bernardino. By recording the covenant document, the City of Needles receives assurance that if the property is sold to someone else, any project on the site is required to comply with the conditions recorded.

The Ordinance requires a business license, but no business license fee is being required, because of the regulatory permit fee ($10K+); a business license tax is also being pursued via Needles City Council approval.

The Ordinance required various reports be provided to the City of Needles, including inventory, sales, etc.

The Ordinance includes changes in the Zoning Code, which requires a distance separation between certain facilities, including schools and churches, etc. Other zoning-related changes include the amendment to the Permissible Use Table, allowing the establishment of medical marijuana collective/ cooperatives within the three commercial zones, and two manufacturing zones, and is also amended to prohibit medical marijuana cultivation projects.

The Proposed Ordinance also includes a non-compliant daily fine of $1,000 per day. In researching the process to collect fines, it is a very labor intensive process, required code enforcement to cite the business and/or businesses daily, provide certified letters to the owner/ operator for each daily fine, prepare reports for administrative hearings, and be able to collect the fines through the court system. It was determined that receiving monies upfront through the permit process would give better protection to the City of Needles to cover associated expenses, rather than use the fines that may not be collectable without assets.

The Proposed Ordinance allows purchases via money order, check, debit card or credit card, but no cash transactions are allowed.

The entire process is planned to be reviewed 6 months after initiation to determine whether the community’s needs are being met with the current system.

Staff has drafted a proposed Resolution to be brought before the Needles City Council prior to the next election, to request the creation of a new “Cannabis” business classification with a business tax rate based on a percent of gross receipts. The draft Resolution is included as Attachment 4.


- Fiscal Impact:

Fees associated with the establishment of medical marijuana collective/ cooperatives.


- Environmental Impact:

Project is exempt from CEQA, pursuant to Section 15061(B)3 and 15305.


- Recommended Action:

Approve Ordinance No. 530-AC to rescind Ordinance No. 528-AC that bans medical marijuana dispensaries, and establishing medical cannabis cooperatives and collectives, amending the Needles Municipal Code Section 12, Creating Article VI “Medical Cannabis Cooperatives and Collective” and amending Section 92 Zoning Code.
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Here are a few more detail related to the medical marijuana drafted ordinance:

- Security personnel and/or armed security personnel that would be on site at the medical marijuana dispensaries, cooperatives and collectives would be required to possess any require Federal, State and Local licenses.

- Lease business space for medical marijuana dispensaries, cooperatives and collectives would be required to be alarm.

- Impose an additional sale tax on the sale of medical marijuana within the City of Needles.

- Medical marijuana dispensaries, cooperatives and collectives would have to provide on the application proof of general liability insurance/ coverage and insurance for the Medical marijuana dispensaries, cooperatives and collectives, its employees, and Security personnel and/or armed security personnel.

- Would require the applicant to provide the name and addresses of any person who is managing or responsible for the medical marijuana dispensaries, cooperatives and collectives as well as staff, volunteers, and employees and a statement as to if the person or persons have been convicted of a crime, the nature of such offences, and the sentence received for such conviction.

- Would require the name and addresses of the owner and lessor of the real property where the businesses would be located and an applicant for if the owner or operator is not the owner of the real property where the medical marijuana dispensaries, cooperatives and collectives would be located. It would then be required a notarized acknowledgement from the owner of the property that a medical marijuana cooperatives and collectives would be operating on the property and has his or her consent.

- Medical marijuana dispensaries, cooperatives and collectives would have to provide on the application evidence that the medical marijuana cooperatives and collectives is being organizes by a nonprofit cooperative, affiliation, association, or collective.

- No one under the age of 18 years of age shall be a member of a collective/ cooperative without notarized written authorization of a parent or legal guardian. No person under 18 shall enter the premises of the collective/ cooperative unless accompanied by a parent or legal guardian.

- No Medical Cannabis Cooperative or Collective shall be established, developed, or operated within one thousand (1,000) feet of a school, recreation center or youth center, or within five hundred (500) feet of a public playground or park, residential zone property, child care or day care facility, church, drug and/or alcohol rehabilitation or recovery facility, or any other Medical Cannabis Cooperative or Collective, and shall not be located on any property that is occupied with a commercial retail use where such use is the primary use on such property. All distance shall be measured in a straight line, without regard to intervening structures or topography, from the nearest point the building or structures in which the Medical Cannabis Cooperative or Collective is located, to the nearest property line of those uses describe in this Subsection.
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Needles City Council Motion and Votes:

Item #1; Motion to Approve; 1st by Needles City Councilmember Lopez and 2nd by Needles City Councilmember Gubmundson.

The Needles City Council Vote: (Item Needs 4 Votes to Pass)

Needles City Councilmember Lopez: Yes
Needles City Councilmember Kidd: Yes
Needles City Councilmember Frazier: Yes
Needles City Mayor Paget: Excused
Needles City Councilmember Campbell: Yes
Needles City Vice Mayor Murch: *Can Not Vote*
Needles City Councilmember Gubmundson: Yes

The vote was 5 to 0; The 1st Reading of Item #1 Passes.

City of Needles Mayor Edward Paget excused himself from this item and Needles Vice Mayor Pat Murch sit in place of City of Needles Mayor Edward Paget


Watch the items and interview with Needles City Attorney John Pinkney about the medical marijuana collectives/ cooperatives (1st Reading) on the Needles City Council Meeting agenda from Tuesday, September 27th, 2011 at the ZachNews Channel on YouTube.

ZachNews on YouTube:
http://youtu.be/wL4zSqcoofU
And
http://youtu.be/CABrTU7Uga8 (Part 2)


The 2nd Reading of the medical marijuana drafted ordinance with be heard and voted on by the Needles City Council Members at the next Needles City Council Meeting on Tuesday, October 13th, 2011.
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- The Full Agenda:

(News Alert!!!: Link to the full Needles City Council Meeting agenda has not been posted onto the City of Needles Website due to technical problems with the program being use to post the agenda. This page may be updated when link to agenda is posted.)


For More Information, Contact Dale Jones at the City Clerk's Office - City of Needles at: 1 (760) 326-2113 x345