While the big item on Tuesday's Eureka City Council agenda is the city's 2010-2011 budget, the others aren't exactly lightweights.
City staff is recommending that the council introduce a medical marijuana ordinance on Tuesday that has been months in the making. The council is also scheduled to consider the city's comments on a draft environmental impact report for a massive subdivision in Cutten and the approval of an expanded no-smoking ordinance in the city in what promises to be a marathon of a meeting.
Community Development Director Sidnie Olson said the proposed medical marijuana ordinance is closely modeled after Arcata's, but contains some notable differences.
"Arcata's was actually the template we built from," Olson said.
The proposed ordinance attempts to deal with the issue through a land-use approach, similar to Arcata's ordinance, and splits the issue into two categories: cultivation for personal medical use and dispensaries.
For personal use, the proposed ordinance would allow qualified patients to cultivate marijuana only in their personal residences, with grow spaces limited to 50 square feet.
While Arcata's ordinance allows cultivation to occur in the residence of a patients' caregiver, Eureka's would not. Olson said this decision was made to eliminate a gray area and potential abuse. However, Olson said, there is nothing in the ordinance requiring patients to actually grow their own, pointing out that a qualified patient could have a caretaker come to their residence to grow the marijuana for them.
The ordinance would require that special wiring for medical marijuana grows receive a permit from the city's building department, and that lighting shall not exceed 1200 watts.
Further, the ordinance prohibits the use of gas products, including CO2 and butane, and requires that there be no external evidence of medical cannabis cultivation at the residence.
Exceptions can be granted for many of the provisions in the proposed ordinance, and would be considered by the city's community development director.
The dispensaries section of the ordinance would allow a maximum of four cultivation/production facilities to be permitted within city limits, each of which would be allowed a maximum of two distribution facilities.
"The selection process for determining which cultivation/production facilities and which distribution facilities may apply for permits shall be by procedure established by the city council," the ordinance reads.
The proposed ordinance also specifically outlaws mobile distribution facilities -- known as "roach coaches" -- but would allow dispensaries to offer delivery services.
"In many, many, ways delivery services are less intrusive than storefronts," Olson said.
City staff is also recommending some modifications to the proposed ordinance, including requiring that distribution facilities only serve patients with valid and current state- or county-issued medical marijuana identification cards and that the facilities only be allowed in the city's service commercial, hospital medical, limited industrial and general industrial zones.
Further, staff is recommending that council include language to prohibit dispensaries from converting into recreational marijuana facilities if a ballot measure seeking to legalize the drug in California passes in November.
Anyone found in violation of the ordinance could be subject to administrative, civil or criminal penalties.
Olson said she thinks the ordinance balances concerns in the community with the rights of medical marijuana users.
"For the legal medical cannabis community, this ordinance will work for them," she said.
In other matters, the council is set to consider submitting comments for the draft environmental impact report for the Ridgewood Village Development, a project in Cutten planned to include 1,442 residential housing units and about 327,000 feet of commercial space.
"City staff from all departments have been reviewing the draft EIR and have identified a number of issues and concerns that warrant comment including, but not limited to, adverse impacts to city public safety resources and personnel, and utility and transportation infrastructure," the staff report states, recommending that the council vote to authorize the mayor to sign the city's comment letter, which will be presented to the council Tuesday evening.
Finally, city staff is recommending that the council adopt the city's new smoking ordinance on Tuesday. The ordinance would prohibit smoking in all outdoor dining areas, within 30 feet of building openings and entrances, in ATM lines and at bus stops, and in outdoor public gathering spaces, such as fairs, farmers markets and sports events.
NewsHawk: Ganjarden: 420 MAGAZINE
Source: ContraCostaTimes.com
Author: Thadeus Greenson
Contact: ContraCostaTimes.com
Copyright: 2010 Bay Area News Group
Website: Going to pot: Eureka council set to consider medical marijuana ordinance
* Thanks to MedicalNeed for submitting this article
City staff is recommending that the council introduce a medical marijuana ordinance on Tuesday that has been months in the making. The council is also scheduled to consider the city's comments on a draft environmental impact report for a massive subdivision in Cutten and the approval of an expanded no-smoking ordinance in the city in what promises to be a marathon of a meeting.
Community Development Director Sidnie Olson said the proposed medical marijuana ordinance is closely modeled after Arcata's, but contains some notable differences.
"Arcata's was actually the template we built from," Olson said.
The proposed ordinance attempts to deal with the issue through a land-use approach, similar to Arcata's ordinance, and splits the issue into two categories: cultivation for personal medical use and dispensaries.
For personal use, the proposed ordinance would allow qualified patients to cultivate marijuana only in their personal residences, with grow spaces limited to 50 square feet.
While Arcata's ordinance allows cultivation to occur in the residence of a patients' caregiver, Eureka's would not. Olson said this decision was made to eliminate a gray area and potential abuse. However, Olson said, there is nothing in the ordinance requiring patients to actually grow their own, pointing out that a qualified patient could have a caretaker come to their residence to grow the marijuana for them.
The ordinance would require that special wiring for medical marijuana grows receive a permit from the city's building department, and that lighting shall not exceed 1200 watts.
Further, the ordinance prohibits the use of gas products, including CO2 and butane, and requires that there be no external evidence of medical cannabis cultivation at the residence.
Exceptions can be granted for many of the provisions in the proposed ordinance, and would be considered by the city's community development director.
The dispensaries section of the ordinance would allow a maximum of four cultivation/production facilities to be permitted within city limits, each of which would be allowed a maximum of two distribution facilities.
"The selection process for determining which cultivation/production facilities and which distribution facilities may apply for permits shall be by procedure established by the city council," the ordinance reads.
The proposed ordinance also specifically outlaws mobile distribution facilities -- known as "roach coaches" -- but would allow dispensaries to offer delivery services.
"In many, many, ways delivery services are less intrusive than storefronts," Olson said.
City staff is also recommending some modifications to the proposed ordinance, including requiring that distribution facilities only serve patients with valid and current state- or county-issued medical marijuana identification cards and that the facilities only be allowed in the city's service commercial, hospital medical, limited industrial and general industrial zones.
Further, staff is recommending that council include language to prohibit dispensaries from converting into recreational marijuana facilities if a ballot measure seeking to legalize the drug in California passes in November.
Anyone found in violation of the ordinance could be subject to administrative, civil or criminal penalties.
Olson said she thinks the ordinance balances concerns in the community with the rights of medical marijuana users.
"For the legal medical cannabis community, this ordinance will work for them," she said.
In other matters, the council is set to consider submitting comments for the draft environmental impact report for the Ridgewood Village Development, a project in Cutten planned to include 1,442 residential housing units and about 327,000 feet of commercial space.
"City staff from all departments have been reviewing the draft EIR and have identified a number of issues and concerns that warrant comment including, but not limited to, adverse impacts to city public safety resources and personnel, and utility and transportation infrastructure," the staff report states, recommending that the council vote to authorize the mayor to sign the city's comment letter, which will be presented to the council Tuesday evening.
Finally, city staff is recommending that the council adopt the city's new smoking ordinance on Tuesday. The ordinance would prohibit smoking in all outdoor dining areas, within 30 feet of building openings and entrances, in ATM lines and at bus stops, and in outdoor public gathering spaces, such as fairs, farmers markets and sports events.
NewsHawk: Ganjarden: 420 MAGAZINE
Source: ContraCostaTimes.com
Author: Thadeus Greenson
Contact: ContraCostaTimes.com
Copyright: 2010 Bay Area News Group
Website: Going to pot: Eureka council set to consider medical marijuana ordinance
* Thanks to MedicalNeed for submitting this article
