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Home My WebLink AboutReview of Response Options to the Recent Cannabis Petitions 2000 Main Street, i Huntington Beach,CA City of Huntington Beach 92648 File #: 21-1006 MEETING DATE: 12/21/2021 Review of response options to the recent cannabis petitions files with the City City of Huntington Beach Page 1 of 1 Printed on 1 211 5/2 0 2 1 p .etec7G Legts;ar^' Huntington12/21/2021 City of Beach Cannabis Petition Response Options City Council Study Session Background Key StateLegislation 2015 2010 Prop 2'15 passed Medical Cannabis �oP 84 passed Regulation and Safety Adult Use of Marijuana Compassionate Act I MCRSA) Act (AUMA) Use ACt i..: al use of f licensm��Icannebis nld :.-n,iai,.nino:n iel Cannabl5 � lwsinesses musl have slate fi local __ _ � Ilcensesl _ n COMMUMCATION mw*vDate: (41. . 12/21/2021 Background — HB Mirrored Statewide Attitudes • In 2016, 53% of H B voters approved Prop 64, vs. 56%of voters Statewide, and 52%of voters in Orange County. Statewide C52% YES City of HB 56% YES 53% YES44% No47% NO City of Huntington Beach — Where are we? • Currently, the City prohibits any commercial establishment of either medical and non-medicaUrecreational cannabis activities Exception:allowing/regulating non-medical marijuana cultivation per a private residence up to six (6) plants 03.2006 11.2007 1 03.2015 08.2017 �_v nanre ro'_- 0rtl IN37 Amen"ad HBZSO Amendetl the Zming the edda eAPressty to ben the commercial Approvetl meo-..:al Ortlinance IH8ZS01 adiculatatl language sale and distribution eliminate medical of non medical =luana that medical manluana manluana YBClaa, t j=d1stncts anesihe dispensaries including Intl .hutjdispensaries as a mlWil9 ones era marijuana anywhere in Pe use in any prohidtetl the Cary soap,a minor toning district mcepnon. 2 12/21/2021 Cannabis Petitions Filed In HB • Two private parties have filed separate cannabis petitions requesting that the City prepare documents allowing their proposed regulations to be placed before the voters of Huntington Beach for consideration • November 3 - Huntington Beach Cannabis Taxation and Regulation Act • December 2 - Huntington Beach Cannabis Regulation&Land Use Measure Signature Gathering Efforts Initiated • Of note, City staff is aware that signature gathering efforts have commenced for at least one of the measures Once petition proponents have certified publication of their notice, they will have 180 days to collect the requisite signatures • If signatures are gathered from at least 10%of registered voters, the City Council will have to either • Adopt the proposed regulation • Place the matter before HB voters at either a special election or the next regularly scheduled election • HB has -130K registered voters 3 12/21/2021 Meeting w/ Legal Cannabis Industry Reps • Representatives from the legal cannabis industry requested a meeting with City staff in mid-November to discuss their intent to circulate a voter initiative in Huntington Beach The legal cannabis industry representatives eventually filed their petition on December 2, the Huntington Beach Cannabis Regulation& Land Use Measure • Industry representatives indicated that their clients were prepared to deploy significant financial resources to obtain the signatures needed to place a measure before HB voters that would legalize cannabis sales in Huntington Beach \ 13�� Current Cannabis Industry Proposal • Requires City issues 12 cannabis facility operating permits • Allows commercial cannabis activity in all commercial and industrial areas of the City, including Specific Plan Area 5 (Downtown) and Specific Plan Area 14 (Beach / Edinger Corridor) • Stores can be located anywhere in the commercial/ industrial zones, with only the minimum required 600 foot buffer from school sites • Imposes a general tax on cannabis sales in the City as follows: • Medicinal Cannabis Retails - 2%of gross receipts (up to 4%) • Adult-Use Retailers - 3%of gross receipts (up to 5%) • Distribution/ Manufacturing/Cultivation - 1%of gross receipts 4 12/21/2021 Initial Staff Assessment • Staff has concerns with the scale to which commercial cannabis activities would be permitted under the current proposal • The number of allowable stores under the proposal has created concerns • The inability to restrict where stores can be located is also of concern • There also appears to be less than desired public benefits associated with the current proposal • In discussions with industry representatives, there was a willingness to discuss possible compromise regulations that might possibly reduce the scale to which commercial cannabis City Council Discussion / Direction • There is no formal action needed by the City at this time, however, given the likelihood that the cannabis industry proposal will succeed in making it onto the ballot, staff is interested in engaging a discussion with the City Council on the following matters: • Interest in engaging the cannabis industry in negotiations on an alternative compromise measure? • Interest in forming a City Council ad-hoc subcommittee to further assess this particular matter? • Discussion/dialogue over other cannabis related matters of concern? 5 12/21/2021 • I. r NMIOK fOM �KN QUESTIONS? 6 Switzer, Donna From: Fikes, Cathy Sent: Wednesday, December 22, 2021 9:58 AM To: Agenda Alerts Subject: FW: Cannabis Study Session From: Billy <billy@avocadogroup.com> Sent: Wednesday, December 22, 2021 9:50 AM To: Peterson, Erik<Erik.Peterson@surfcity-hb.org> Cc: Fikes, Cathy<CFikes@surfcity-hb.org> Subject: Cannabis Study Session Hello , My name is Billy Maddox, I spoke at yesterdays study session on cannabis, I just wanted to reach out and thank you for your support in the exploration of bringing cannabis businesses to Huntington Beach. I am lifelong Huntington Beach resident, and I am also the founder and owner of a cannabis multi state operator(M5O) as well as I am a founding board member of the National Hispanic Cannabis Council where I am the co-chair for the Economic Development Committee. I have built grows, labs, distribution centers, and retails in several different states and municipalities, and was awarded the first distribution license from the state of California for distribution of medical and recreational cannabis. I have been in the industry for more than half of my life, since the day I turned 18 and got my medical recommendation, and I am very passionate about the plant especially due to my belief that it saved my father's life when he was battling cancer. As I resident I would agree with you that we need to look at this properly for the safety of the city. I liked what you were saying about security and monitoring and how most do it incorrectly, as someone who would say they do it correctly, I would love to speak with you further about the systems that I have setup and see what you think about them. Our lab in Lynwood was the first volatile solvent lab to be operational in the LA County and I have a lot of experience with the security systems, cameras, alarms, access control, as well as C1D1 evacuation and interlock systems. It was great to hear that there is someone with so much knowledge and interactions with operational cannabis businesses is on the council. I have seen firsthand the benefits that cannabis can offer and provide, and I thank you again for your consideration.This will bring new jobs to Huntington Beach, benefit the community tremendously in a variety of ways, and provide access to those that need it as a medication, as I have for more than 18 years. If there is anything I can do to help or provide you with any information, please do not hesitate to reach out. It has always been a dream to operate a cannabis business in the city and I look forward to taking part in the application process. Thank you so much for your time. Billy C Maddox II 714.717.7007 1