West Covina planning commission reviews medical marijuana dispensary study; staff to draft two code amendments

At its April 8 meeting, the West Covina Planning Commission reviewed a staff study session on medical marijuana dispensaries and heard that the City Council directed staff to prepare two draft code amendments: one to prohibit dispensaries in the city and a second to set standards and restrictions in the event federal law requires cities to allow them.

The staff presentation said the city currently prohibits dispensary uses through an interpretation of the business-license code and noted a conflict between federal and state law. "The city currently prohibits this type of use," the planning staff said in presenting the report. The staff cited the federal Controlled Substances Act and local experience in other jurisdictions as reasons the city is considering a formal code amendment rather than leaving the issue to licensing interpretation alone.

The report referenced California's Compassionate Use Act (often called Proposition 215) and a recently introduced state bill, Senate Bill 1262 (sponsored in the transcript by Sen. Correa and supported by the California Police Chiefs Association and League of California Cities), which seeks to clarify rules for dispensaries and would require the California Department of Public Health to license and regulate facilities that local jurisdictions permit.

Commissioner Menefee raised federal preemption and urged a prompt prohibition, saying, "The federal law prohibits cultivating, distributing, and dispensing marijuana. Period. I don't understand why we need to go much further." Other commissioners questioned how to regulate a product through planning rules focused on physical characteristics such as building layout, parking and buffers. Planning staff said they will coordinate with the police department and research how other cities handle location, security, buffer distances from schools and playgrounds, and other operational standards.

Staff also summarized experiences reported by other cities. The presentation noted problems some jurisdictions attributed to dispensaries, including burglary, robbery, assaults, diversion of product for nonmedical use and exposure of school-age children to dispensary activity; the presenter cited Riverside as an example where officials reported increased crime tied to dispensary operations.

Planning staff said they will return with more research and options at a subsequent study session, tentatively scheduled for May. "We will do research such as what other cities allow them, what kind of problems they have experienced, whether they're backing away from allowing them, whether they're limiting them, what kind of criteria or requirements they have," staff said. The commission will consider those options and, if appropriate, forward a recommendation to City Council for a formal code amendment and public hearings.

The commission discussion also touched on related issues: bank-deposit restrictions because many banks are federally chartered, and recent federal guidance that may affect how financial institutions handle marijuana-related deposits. Commissioners and staff noted that regulatory details from federal or state authorities — if issued — would influence the content of any local regulations.

Votes at a glance: The meeting recorded one formal vote on adoption of the March 25, 2014 minutes with changes requested by Commissioner Menefee. The commission adopted the minutes 4-0.

The commission did not take a regulatory vote on dispensaries at this meeting; the session was a study session and staff-level research assignment rather than an adoption of code language. Staff said they will return with draft amendment options and public-notice steps before any formal zoning or code changes are proposed.