Costa Mesa council set to reconsider cannabis laws that have become problematic
Nearly two years after Costa Mesa officials approved an ordinance regulating the sale of retail cannabis dispensaries — agreeing to see how the rules played out as a local marketplace matured — it appears a municipal tune-up may be in order.
City Council members are poised Tuesday to open the hood on the ordinance, considering what has and hasn’t worked, now that 18 enterprises, including 10 retail shops, have received the cannabis business permits necessary to open, and the fate of another 31 applications still hangs in the balance.
The panel will consider a set of recommendations offered by the Costa Mesa Planning Commission, which did the yeoman’s work of logging resident concerns and discussing possible amendments over the course of three public hearings in November, December and January.
Commissioners suggested city leaders consider capping the number of approved retail dispensaries at 30 for now and then letting the marketplace sort out winners and losers until just 15 storefronts are left standing before establishing 15 as a permanent cap.
They also asked the council to consider a separation requirement between cannabis businesses and residential properties and among other cannabis retailers.
After navigating a lawsuit, police raid and protracted settlement agreement, High Seas’ owners are ready to open a storefront at 1921 Harbor Blvd.
City figures indicate 10 of the 22 businesses that have already received a conditional use permit from the Planning Commission are located within 500 feet of another approved business. Among the 31 proposals pending, 23 are similarly situated next to existing storefronts, according to a staff report for Tuesday’s meeting.
The issue of proximity has reared its head lately at commission meetings, as cannabis proprietors present proposals for a shop inside retail complexes in which one or more dispensaries are already operating.
Some jilted applicants sought to have the commission denials overturned by the City Council, ostensibly on the grounds that nothing in the letter of the law prohibits such a concentration, and were successful, but in the last year, even council members have been questioning whether the ordinances need to be revised.
Furthermore, Costa Mesa has been the defendant in multiple lawsuits filed by pot proprietors related to the fairness of the city’s application process, the withholding of promised permits and allegations of unfair denials at the planning commission and council levels.
In addition to a potential cap on the number of stores in the city and distance separation requirements, the council will discuss Tuesday whether to increase an enforced buffer between dispensaries and “youth centers” from 600 to 1,000 feet and what qualifies for the youth center designation, cannabis storefront signage and whether the city might provide assistance for businesses displaced by pot shops.
The council meeting begins Tuesday at 6 p.m. at Costa Mesa City Hall, 77 Fair Drive. For the meeting agenda, visit costamesaca.gov.
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