Merced medical pot ordinance gains planners’ recommendation

Merced city planners have recommended that a revised medical cannabis ordinance be approved in light of changes that more strictly regulate cultivation.

The planners agreed to recommend the modified ordinance on a 5-1 vote Wednesday, according to the city’s staff. Commissioner Kevin Smith cast the dissenting vote. Chairman Travis Colby, who is a prosecutor for the Merced County District Attorney’s Office, recused himself for the vote, according to the city’s staff.

Planners said medical marijuana patients or their caregivers should be allowed to grow six mature or six immature plants, which is stricter than the 12 immature or six mature plants proposed in the initial draft from the city’s staff.

The plants should be grown only indoors, the planners also recommended. The proposed ordinance from the city’s staff would allow outside cultivation under certain restraints.

When it comes to dispensaries, the commission recommended loosening restrictions, allowing them to be located in commercial office and industrial zones. The proposed ordinance from the city’s staff would allow commercial medical cannabis dispensaries only in professional and commercial office zones or any developments designated for office space, which typically are where doctors’ offices and pharmacies are located.

After several meetings and study sessions, the Merced City Council made a recommendation for a new ordinance in April. The proposed ordinance would allow up to four dispensaries, which also would be subject to restrictions that would place them far from schools, playgrounds and other areas that tend to have children.

The council initially banned all sales and cultivation this year, but members have said the city should allow for dispensaries. The commission’s vote in this case is a recommendation on the proposed ordinance.

The City Council is scheduled to get its first look at, and could make a decision on, the revised proposal during the July 5 council meeting, the city’s staff said. The council would be required to allow public comment before making a decision.

This story was originally published May 19, 2016 at 4:32 PM with the headline "Merced medical pot ordinance gains planners’ recommendation."