The Concord City Council this week approved a cannabis storefront retail operation planning to move into the Park & Shop center.
Santa Barbara-based Coastal Retail wants to be up and running at 1847 Willow Pass Road by August.
It would be the third retail cannabis storefront operation in Concord. The city adopted an ordinance in 2020 to allow three such adult-use only establishments in the city, along with manufacturers, non-storefront retail, distributors, and microbusinesses.
The council technically approved two items, The first, which was approved unanimously, was for an administrative permit and design and site review for a cannabis storefront retail business.
The second was for the development agreement between the city and Coastal, which passed 4-1. Vice Mayor Laura Hoffmeister dissented over language in the resolution she said gave cannabis providers the ability to skirt future rules involving vaping.
Council member Edi Birsan said he’d like the city to change its rules to add more dispensaries.
“I would like to see us put it on (the council’s agenda) some time in the future to discuss it, because I believe the market should be able to sort this out and we should have additional dispensaries,” Birsan said.
The city received 21 proposals for their limited storefront permits. Coastal was one of three chosen, along with Authentic Concord and Culture Club Corporate Enterprise.
The planning commission officially recommended the project in December, forwarding it to the council for final approval. Hoffmeister asked staff to work with Coastal to see if they could include some sort of decorative concrete bollards or planters, to shield the store from smash and grab robberies.
42 comments
Naturally. This new “store” fits Concord perfectly. Homeless surge, crime wave, urban blight, horrible city government, now stores that sell weed. Lovely.
Yes, I don’t smoke, but it gives me the warm fuzzies.
+1
Concord, where doped up families come first!
Exactly, especially in the train wreck MDUSD.
If you can afford to pay weed club prices and taxes your an upper class weed smoker. Cannabis clubs generally don’t attract riff raff. Ghetto weed smokers still buy off the street. Taxes are like 25% in the clubs
You are correct Schmee. Not sure about CA taxes on Cannabis products but the average tax in Northern NV is 22%. So if a person buys $50 of product there is $11 in taxes paid.
Some folks on here would be shocked to know their “respectible” neighbors that have good jobs and are involved in many aspects of the community use cannabis.
I understand its going to fill the vacant Fry’s building.
If it ever caught fire the entire City of Concord would get stoned.
Just a couple of storefronts away from that other Den of Iniquity in P’nS…..the legendary Starlite Room, some golden memories there back in the day!
OPEN 8 AM – that bar was the best
…in other news, the business permits for several liquor stores within the city limits were renewed without protest. The wife beating, brawling, liver disease, and vehicular carnage shall continue in very much the same fashion to which we have grown accustomed.
👍
Got that right Rolaids.
And look at all the gas stations with mini markets that sell alcohol and there are 2 less than a block away from Ygnacio Valley High
And like Schmee says the people that buy from dispensaries have money. And they take the product home to use. The don’t sit in the car guzzling out of a paper bag before leaving the store and continue to guzzle while driving.
We knew it was a done deal. How long before the first robbery and shootout?
Numb and dumb, that’s how they want people.
Will be robbed in the first two weeks.
…. ok 2 weeks … I was thinking a week
Yeah because, you know, all the other dispensaries keep getting robbed, right? Oh, wait…
Put it next to chick’s…one stop shopping!
Yes, Council Member Birsan. Let’s add additional dispensaries in Concord since, heaven knows, three won’t be enough. As if Concord hasn’t already gone to pot … pun intended.
Reading these comments I have to say some of you prudish up tights could use a little mary jane. I have to say, I am not a personal fan of marijuana. Although in 2012 I was diagnosed with stage II breast cancer and had a double mastectomy. I struggled with so much weight loss, the doctor prescribed it and it really helped me get back to a healthy weight, and I was able to fight and recover from cancer. However I did not like how stupid it made me feel. Like how my husband gets after 2 glasses of wine.
Also, my son was deployed to Iraq in 2003 for the war, and when he came home he was not the same person. He suffered from extreme depression and flashbacks of the things he saw and did there. He began smoking marijuana and he credits that as the reason he did not kill himself.
So, for the right reasons I encourage you to look at with an open mind but I understand the hesitation.
Daria
You hit the nail on the head with “uptight ”
Way to many in Concord are stuck with the delusion that Concord is 1950’s Beaver Cleaver land. Yeah Beaver Cleaver land died when they built a massive amount of apartments on Monument, Detroit, Clayton Rd and other parts of town
There are 3 dispensaries where I live (population 56,000) and we’ve had no major issues like robberies or shootings. Maybe Concord residents need to take an inward look as to why Concord is the way it is. MYbd tge problem is citizens whose antiquated mindset is stuck in the 50s
… you cite actual reasons for use… generally speaking its used just to get stoned for those with no real need
We use edibles to help with sleep and I smoke occasionally to unwind after working all day, much like others do with a drink. I don’t have any interest in sitting around just being stoned all day. There are benefits, like you noted. People need to understand, their neighbors have been doing this for years and a good 1/3 of my neighborhood partakes. I grew up around people who got high. They were all respectable members of society, held good jobs, paid their bills, raised their family.
Now the city council can get special deals on weed.Smoke a few before the meetings and make some more good decisions for our city.Wonder what the kick back is for this one?
Welcome to the new Concord. Chick-fil-A, no way! Pot store, absolutely! We don’t even need to think about it.
Keep winning Concord City Council!
So I’m assuming NOBODY from the Council bothered to take a ride over to the dispenseries at Sunrise Dr or Alhambra Ave in Martinez to see the Blight and Low lifes these places attract, they probably read the positI’ve reviews on Yelp.
Sad.
Yeah dispensaries attract undesirables, but it’s undeniable that a corner liquor store attracts more, worse, and far more violent undesirables.
A place selling $9.98 gallons of 80 proof vodka does 100 times the harm that a place selling a $200 ounce of cannabis.
My sister resides in San Francisco. Three marijuana dispensaries have opened up in her neighborhood including one that is at the corner of her street. Due to limited parking, many of the customers park on her street. They buy their weed, go to their cars, smoke the weed and play their music very loud while getting stoned in front of her house. Police have been called numerous times with zero effect. All three of the dispensaries have been robbed and repeatedly burglarized. I think this is a bad move and for the record I used to smoke pot in the 1980s but haven’t touched it since. For the older crowd I have no issues. For the younger crowd I worry about THC levels that are increasing to over 30% which can easily trigger psychosis in some people as well as cause other psychological issues.
… more dumbing of the American population…. sad
The only store in go to in that area is Joann Fabric. It’s been really low on stock lately. I was there about a week ago and the walls, that are usually covered in wreaths and floral decor, were empty. I sure hope that means the store is moving elsewhere.
The Mediterranean has been going downhill for a long time – I used to love that place when the previous owners ran it as Mediterranean City.
think its where the shoe store was…
It’s far less expensive to purchase drugs on the black market.
The government has just about taxed the legal suppliers out of business.
I don’t know what the City Council hoped to gain for the City, but I’m sure they are comfortable with what they got.
🙂
@Lost Hope
Out of business, I suppose.
I don’t think a lot of people on this site have a problem with having a pot dispensary. What I realize from reading the comments is that many here are displeased at is having to deal with the problems these dispensaries bring since they aren’t being frequented by those who need the weed for medicinal purposes but they are being frequented mostly by those who smoking weed and being unproductive is their way of life; the stoned life.
I agree. Most of the smokers I know are more like The Dude.
https://tinyurl.com/3shwd9jw
@Jelly
The Dude needed medical cannabis due to emotional trauma wrought by the theft of his rug.
@Dr Jellyfinger….’The Dude abides”.
Increasing the number of “stoned and stupid residents” in Concord – which will be a byproduct of this expansion of Pot dispensaries – is City Manager Valerie Barone’s signature accomplishment. during her years as city manager. If Barone has done anything else during her years as City Manager I’m not aware of it. Can anybody name one thing Valerie Barrone has done since she’s been City Manager other than to get that temporary tax measure passed and made permanent
When it comes to trying to figure out ways to squeeze more money out of Concord residents – which is the goal of this expansion in the number of pot stores – Barrone is like a heat seeking missile. After Barrone squeezes taxpayers in Concord for more money, anyway she can dream up, she then uses the extra tax revenue to give big fat raises to city employees. Am I the only ClayCord reader who has noticed how unbelievably high the wages of City employees are in Concord? Anybody who takes the time to look into that will be stunned at the size and scope of the pay packages at the City of Concord (Bud Stewart rolls over in his grave regularly. I’m sure)
While Barrone knows how to squeeze taxpayers in Concord for money, we get almost no amenities for our tax dollars whatsoever in Concord, compared to say WC or PH. Walnut Creek has built a new library, a gem of a library, PH has a new library in the process of being built. The rec programs in PH and WC are the best around. Concord’s? Concord are a big joke.
Where is Concord’s new library? (none planned) PH has a 5,000 square ft teen center. Where is Concord teen center (none planned). Why doesn’t a city the size of Concord have an indoor gym to play basketball or even state of the art outdoor basketball courts?
Concord’s residents are not getting these amenities in Concord because our city is steeped in corruption (see the power of the PD labor union – they run the whole town behind the scenes) This expansion in the number of pot stores -the City of Concord is now a “partner” in these stores (the city gets 11% of the gross of sales) is just more ongoing corruption by city officials. Concord residents will get nothing from the revenue generated from the pot stores – only city workers will benefit because almost all revenue in Concord is eaten up by bloated city employee pay packages. Concord taxpayers are getting fleeced by these do-nothing city workers – to do the jobs they are not doing, which is reflected in city officials total inability to provide the the kind of quality amenities surrounding cites are getting/
How many shops in Concord sell alcohol? Shoot, you can go to Safeway and buy as much alcohol as you want while you buy dinner and diapers.
Check the rates of death associated with alcohol vs. marijuana, liver disease, drunk driving deaths etc.
We should be encouraging businesses to come to Concord! This will create a few extra jobs and some additional tax revenue as well.
And all those complaining about the riff-raff, would you rather have a high person or a drunk person out in public? The high one will be passive, probably just chillaxing somewhere, where the drunk is going to be loud, belligerent, and even relieving themselves.
Its time to get over the stigma of marijuana!
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