Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Cannabis Zoning topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Small Business Commission reviews proposed cannabis retail zones, seeks equity and school‑buffer clarity
Summary
Commissioners discussed proposed expansions to Daly City's cannabis retail overlay and the equity program designed to broaden participation; staff noted state rules require a 600‑foot buffer from schools. An attorney and prospective operator urged more zones, time limits on unused permits and permitting flexibility.
Daly City staff presented proposed new retail cannabis overlay areas to the Small Business Commission on Feb. 13 and asked commissioners to advise which locations should move forward to the city’s cannabis subcommittee and later the planning commission and full council.
Staff described the proposal as part of an equity strategy intended to increase geographic distribution of retail permits and create opportunities in neighborhoods that historically experienced disproportionate cannabis enforcement. “We feel like expanding areas would provide additional opportunities,” staff said, while noting only two zones were currently operating and others either had permit holders who had not opened or permits where operations had ceased.
Commissioners asked about proximity to schools. Staff said the city follows state regulation requiring 600 feet of separation from a school or organizations that primarily serve children (daycare, preschools and after‑school programs). One commissioner said that proximity was their primary concern when weighing new zones.
Public comment included John Heredia, a Daly City native, cannabis industry attorney and law professor. Heredia said local operators have repeatedly failed to secure leases within current zones because many landlords will not rent to cannabis businesses and because the city’s zoning limits the number of retailers per zone. “Time and time again, we've tried leasing locations in the current green zones, and time and time again, we've been unsuccessful,” Heredia said. He asked the commission to recommend increasing the number of zones, permitting more than one dispensary per zone and considering “shot clock” deadlines for permit holders who have not opened to either secure state and local approvals or forfeit opportunities to other local operators.
Commissioners discussed neighborhood character and noted that some suggested areas (Bayshore and Mission Street corridors) are commercial corridors with active businesses, while acknowledging some neighborhoods have struggled historically. Staff reiterated the equity rationale, saying the neighborhoods under consideration had higher cannabis arrest rates in prior decades and the equity program is intended, in part, to address that history.
No formal vote was taken. Staff said the commission’s recommendation would be forwarded to the cannabis subcommittee (comprised of two council members, including the mayor and Council member Teresa Perano), then the planning commission and ultimately the City Council for final action.
Why it matters: Changes to the retail overlay and the equity program will affect who can open cannabis retailers in Daly City, which properties are eligible and how tax revenues and economic opportunities are distributed.
What’s next: The commission may postpone further action to allow more time for deliberation; staff said an equity assessment and proposed ordinance language would be available the following week for additional review.
