Livingston sets rules on pot growth for medical use

Medical cannabis users who have been regulated under state rules for about a decade will be restrained to two plants in Livingston after a decision from the City Council this week.

With a 3-2 vote, the council denied a Planning Commission recommendation and began the process to adopt an ordinance to ban medical marijuana sales but allow marijuana-card-carrying patients to grow two plants as long as they are outside. Councilmen Alex McCabe and Jim Soria cast the dissenting votes.

Like many cities in the region, Livingston is scrambling to pass an ordinance so it can retain local control over medical cannabis. Cities that don’t have an ordinance by March 1 will be regulated by state law.

For the past decade, the city has allowed six mature plants and a dozen immature plants.

McCabe said drafting an ordinance that turns local users into criminals makes little sense. “I don’t like the idea of us being more restrictive than the state of California,” he said on Wednesday. “We have measures that have been passed by the voters, and I think that we should respect those.”

The Planning Commission’s recommendation of allowing marijuana delivery and the cultivation of six plants would have been better suited, he said.

Soria voted no, saying users should not be allowed any plants because they give off an unpleasant odor that could annoy neighbors.

A second reading of the ordinance is scheduled for the next meeting, on Jan. 19. The ordinance becomes official 30 days later.

The council agreed to revisit the ordinance after conducting workshops and study sessions with residents.

Councilman Gurpal Samra noted not all residents are fans of the state’s medical marijuana laws, but stressed that the state does allow for its use.

He said the ordinance in question is essentially a placeholder until the city can conduct further research. “If (patients) have a legitimate need, we want to try to help them,” he said. “We can always come back and make adjustments.”

Also during Tuesday’s meeting, the council appointed Odi Ortiz, assistant city manager and finance director, as the interim city manager. The search for the next administrator is set to begin in the coming months.

This story was originally published January 6, 2016 at 6:05 PM with the headline "Livingston sets rules on pot growth for medical use."