Pot shops get moratorium

BY ERIC LINDBERG
DAILY SOUND STAFF WRITER

City leaders agreed to put a six-month moratorium in place on new medical marijuana dispensaries to give staff time to draft an ordinance regulating the distribution of medical marijuana in Santa Barbara.
The City Council voted unanimously to send the issue to the Ordinance Committee to look at possible regulations ranging from the location of pot dispensaries to hours of operation, security and onsite consumption.

“We have issues that should not be allowed to persist,” said Councilmember Iya Falcone, who is also a member of the Ordinance Committee. “...We will take it methodically and quickly, and we’ll put our arms around it and get it done.”
The Council appeared to be in agreement that the process should not involve a discussion of the legality or appropriateness of medical marijuana, but serve simply as a way to provide safe access and protect the health and safety of the public.
Councilmember Das Williams called the community outcry for regulations on pot shops “legitimate,” but warned against issuing a statement on the use of marijuana for health purposes.
“What I am not interested in,” Williams said, “is to crush medical marijuana use.”
Issues have been raised at community meetings over marijuana dispensaries located in residential areas that stay open late into the evening. Many local residents have called for regulations on how close dispensaries can be to schools, childcare facilities and parks. Others have requested restrictions on loitering outside shops and alcohol consumption on site.
Councilmember Helene Schneider, who brought the issue to the Council along with Mayor Marty Blum and Councilmember Grant House, said she views a conditional use permit as the best option.
With such a permit, the city will be able to regulate how the shops operate as well as require a review and renewal process for those who want to operate a dispensary, Schneider said.
City Attorney Steve Wiley said hours of operation and similar regulations would go into effect fairly soon after the adoption of an ordinance. Dispensary owners would be given an amortization period for other issues, such as relocating their shops, Wiley said, for possibly up to two years.
City staff will return to the Council within the next few weeks with the moratorium legislation, while drafting the ordinance could take three to four months.