Supervisors extend moratorium on new medical marijuana dispensaries

The moratorium on new medical marijuana dispensaries in unincorporated San Diego County has been extended to March 2017.

A 5-0 San Diego County Board of Supervisors vote April 27 extended the moratorium by an additional 10 months and 15 days. A 45-day moratorium was approved March 16.

"I think extending the moratorium is important," said Supervisor Dianne Jacob.

On March 16, the four members of the San Diego County Board of Supervisors who were present voted to place a 45-day moratorium on new medical marijuana dispensaries in the county and also directed county staff to provide potential modification measures.

The amendments to be considered include changing the 1,000 foot separation requirement for a residential area from parcels with residential zoning to parcels with residential use, limiting the number of dispensaries in a community, increasing the buffer distance from residences and other sensitive land sites, adding incorporated cities to the 1,000 foot separation requirement, requiring a major use permit which would include public review, increased civil penalties for violators of the ordinance, and exploring increased enforcement.

"We referred a lot of issues back to staff," Jacob said.

In November 1996, the state's voters passed Proposition 215 which allows the cultivation, possession, and use of marijuana for medicinal purposes. In June 2010, the San Diego County Board of Supervisors adopted regulations pertaining to medical marijuana dispensaries including amendments to the county's zoning ordinance.

Medical marijuana dispensaries are restricted to land with M50, M52, M54, or M58 industrial zoning and must be at least 1,000 feet away from each other, a church, a school, a public park, or a residential area. The county supervisors also approved a regulatory ordinance for licensing and operation requirements.

A medical marijuana dispensary which meets County of San Diego zoning requirements does not require a discretionary permit but requires a building permit and other ministerial authorizations as well as a license. The content of signage cannot be regulated although dispensaries must conform to zoning ordinance signage regulations as well as parking requirements.

When the Board of Supervisors approved the zoning requirements for medical marijuana dispensaries in 2010, county staff estimated that between 15 and 20 dispensaries would open. The current estimate is 18 to 23 sites. Two licensed medical marijuana dispensaries currently operate in the unincorporated county: one in unincorporated El Cajon near the Gillespie Field airport and one in Ramona near Ramona Airport. Four additional dispensaries have been issued building permits, and licenses but not building permits have been approved for an additional four facilities.

The county currently has 15 unlicensed dispensary enforcement cases still open and has closed 42 cases since 2009, when the board of supervisors adopted an urgency ordinance which enacted a moratorium on all marijuana dispensaries six weeks after the county supervisors directed the county's chief administrative officer to work with county counsel on the drafting of an amendment to the zoning ordinance which would prohibit illegal medical marijuana dispensaries from operating in the unincorporated portion of the county.

The licensing process revealed that the 1,000 foot separation from a residential area is from parcels with residential zoning rather than parcels with a residence. The dispensary authorized in Valley Center is more than 1,000 feet away from any residential-zoned land but within 1,000 feet of land with A70 Limited Agricultural zoning which allows residences. The proposed Julian dispensary is on one of four parcels along State Route 78 which were rezoned from agricultural to industrial with the residential use on those four parcels being grandfathered.

"It was never the intent of this board to allow dispensaries that were within 1,000 feet of residences," Jacob said.

"This is about medical marijuana," Fred Dornon said. "There's not enough demand right now to require the level of dispensaries that they're trying to build."

On Jan. 22, the county's Planning Commission heard a presentation on the current status of the ordinance but did not vote on a recommendation. Several county residents addressed their concerns during the public comment period of the Feb. 3 Board of Supervisors meeting, and although the Board of Supervisors can not take action on a non-agenda item discussed during public comment Jacob directed county staff to return to the board with options which could address the concerns.

One of the options considered March 16 would have been an outright ban on medical marijuana facilities. The supervisors' 2010 zoning regulations preceded a court decision that jurisdictions could ban dispensaries completely. The ban would have grandfathered the two existing facilities and allowed other pending applications to be reviewed on a case-by-case basis with no new applications being accepted.

The moratorium allows existing applications to move forward and be reviewed on a case-by-case basis.

"If they have vested rights that's a decision we're going to make," said Supervisor Ron Roberts.

"We went by the medical marijuana map the county came up with," said Dino Berardino, who represented the Survivor Meds dispensary which is planning to operate in Ramona.

"Morally I think I have an obligation to allow those to move forward," said Supervisor Greg Cox. "A moratorium is something I can support with the understanding that those who played by the rules will be allowed to have their projects fully vetted."

"This is not a philosophical discussion about the pros and cons of marijuana," said Supervisor Dave Roberts.

"People have operated in good faith," Roberts said. "I don't think punishing business people who follow the rules is the right thing to do."

The existing ShowGrow dispensary in Ramona is 1,107 square feet, and a ban would preclude ShowGrow's plans to construct a fully enclosed cultivation facility on site which would encompass 10,000 to 12,000 square feet. PDS will determine whether the expansion can be allowed while the moratorium is in effect.

"We make sure that these people are helped," said ShowGrow manager Gabby Phillips. "We need to cultivate and we need to produce our own product for these people."

ShowGrow operations and compliance manager Charles Boldwyn noted that a moratorium would prevent any renovations to the ShowGrow building including modifications to improve access for the disabled. "It impacts our plan to continue our operations," he said.

"There is no benefit to health and safety," ShowGrow legal counsel Gina Austin said of a moratorium.

The zoning changes will require environmental review and a planning commission hearing along with appropriate public notice and a public comment period for the environmental review, so the estimated timeframe for a developed ordinance to return to the board of supervisors is eight months. Developing and approving increased civil penalties is an estimated six-month process, while the logistics for increased enforcement created a nine-month estimate.

"The reason we adopted the moratorium has not changed," Jacob said. "This board is not denying through a moratorium that we put in place March 16 anyone access to medical marijuana."