Atwater takes another step to allowing cannabis businesses

Atwater leaders are trying to fine tune the city’s move toward allowing commercial cannabis in town, though many of them have expressed a dislike for marijuana.

Leaders banned dispensaries, cultivation and manufacturing of cannabis in town last year. Since then, city staffers have been drawing up a new ordinance that could loosen up the city’s stance and potentially generate new revenue for the cash-strapped town.

Leaders were asked on Monday by interim City Manager Scott McBride to provide some clarity. He said staffers can look at other cities’ ordinances to get started but the local ordinance needs to “make sense for our community.”

Voters passed Proposition 64 in November, generally making recreational use of marijuana legal for adults 21 and over.

Individual cities can decide whether to allow dispensaries and manufacturing. The city of Merced, for example, voted last year to allow four dispensaries.

Atwater is looking at charging fees by the square footage of the plant canopy, as well as fees to run background checks on employees at cannabis businesses and other charges.

Leaders have been clear that commercial cannabis businesses should not be on Broadway Avenue or Bellevue Road, the city’s downtown and retail-heavy street, respectively.

Several city leaders and some local business owners have expressed skepticism about allowing dispensaries, pointing to security issues. But, they also are seeing dollar signs.

“If there wasn’t a potential for a lot of money in it, I’d vote no across the board,” Councilwoman Cindy Vierra said.

Atwater has struggled financially in recent years, verging on bankruptcy in 2012, and is dealing with a $2.8 million general fund debt, among other unfunded obligations, according to city staffers.

Though his intentional response to commercial cannabis was dubious, local business owner Brad Kessler said his stance is evolving. “As hard-headed as I am, I’m coming around that it’s not a drug anymore,” he said. “It’s a product.”

He warned the city not to load too many fees onto a new business, making its success less likely.

Mayor Jim Price said the most important factor is safety and security, saying the city must require armed guards at any commercial cannabis site.

“However we go to do this, I don’t want to see the police department be the ones saddled with the burden,” he said. “The security of this kind of stuff needs to be — no kidding — ironclad Fort Knox kind of stuff.”

This story was originally published April 25, 2017 at 4:04 PM with the headline "Atwater takes another step to allowing cannabis businesses."