The Walnut Creek City Council said Tuesday it wants to allow recreational adult-use cannabis sales, at least as far as delivery goes, but will hold off until next year before taking up the issue of storefront sales within city limits.
All five council members agreed the city shouldn’t explore allowing commercial cultivation or preparation of cannabis within the city.
The council didn’t vote to officially enact anything Tuesday night but did direct staff to expedite exploring new rules for adult-use delivery within the city.
Members were open to the issue of storefront sales but wanted to push it back until early next year, at the soonest, as they already have staff prioritizing downtown recovery from COVID-19 shutdowns.
“For me, the most important thing is really the bigger issues of the economic recovery of downtown,” Councilmember Cindy Silva said.
“All of that work has started and is a high priority for us, and we said that. That is where I land on this. Sometimes you can’t have it all,” Silva said.
Mayor Kevin Wilk asked staff to try to come back with some guidance on storefront cannabis sales sometime during the next six months.
In 2018, the city adopted its own regulations for “personal and commercial cannabis activities.”
The current ordinance allows for up to two non-storefront, delivery-only cannabis retailers within city limits, though only one — HerbNJoy — currently operates in the city.
At the time, city officials said not enough was known about potential impacts to the community if wider use was allowed, and they were also concerned about additional crime and that residents didn’t want more of a visible presence of cannabis in the city.
Earlier this year, the city reassessed its ordinance and looked at the impact on 28 other local jurisdictions allowing some form of cannabis sales.
In California, medical cannabis was legalized in 1996 and non-medical use for people 21 and over was legalized in 2016.
Tuesday’s staff report pointed out 70 percent of cannabis use is recreational and taxable, with the rest being medicinal (which isn’t taxable). Moving away from prescription-only use will increase taxable sales, the report says, and “existing retail stores in Martinez and Antioch are doing extremely well, and in the next eight to 12 months, one new store will open in Pacheco and four to five new retail stores will open in Concord. There is an estimated demand for approximately 10 to 12 more retail stores in Contra Costa County.”
If recreational sales are legal, the city could collect revenue not only through sales tax, but through business licensing and permit fees. A local sales tax could also be imposed on businesses outside the city that deliver within city limits.
Never mind what’s behind the curtain, just get high and keep those Democrat’s in office.
Sounds like they want to push pot for extra tax revenue. Well what about the extra crime increase that always comes with it?
I wish the Walnut Creek Council would try to look at other issues facing the city that really matter people’s everyday lives- like crime- and forget their liberal progressive dogmas there brought to the city it’s making it more like an Oakland or Berkeley.
I grew up in Walnut Creek and it was a great place to grow up. Low crime, very safe, nice downtown area, etc…..Anybody that cannot see where the fortunes of that city are heading is just not looking. It is already a far cry from what it once was and it will only get worse. Crime is going up, up, up and the quality of life is going the other direction. Yes I do place a lot of the blame on the “progressive dogmas” that are firmly in place there now….It is sad.
+1 ..and to jprcards +1
That will bring a great element to town. What the heck are they thinking. See how fast they get robbed.
+1 .. they only want the $$$
@Ricardoh-there are several dispensaries that aren’t that far from WC (Pacheco and Antioch)so I’m not sure why you’d think it would attract a “great” element to WC. I do remember reading about a couple robberies at dispensaries in the Bay Area when it initially was made legal but that was it…plus all dispensaries have armed guards so it wouldn’t be an easy hit…
Did you know we already have out of towners robbing women of their purses at gun point in Walnut Creek. They don’t even get out of their car to do it. Just pull up along side of them on the sidewalk and point a gun at them.
Crime will go up.
More tax money for the city. Why not open a coke shop and tax that too. Lot’s of potential revenue there.
It’s my opinion that it is a huge misuse of allocated funds if any student wants to bring a knife, cigarette lighter, firearms. and speaking of which, if a kid is going to shoot his school up I don’t think he/she/lgbtxynz going to give a crap about a metal detector so why pay for it in the first place, same goes with other weapons.
“I’m making another delivery, of chemicals and sacred roots, I’ll hold what you have to give me, but I’ll use what I have to use” Rust Never Sleeps!