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HomeMy WebLinkAboutNS-2925 - Amending Certain Sections of Chapter 18 of Santa Ana Municipal Code Pertaining to Medical Marijuana CollectivesAP9.5.17 ORDINANCE NO. NS -2925 AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SANTA ANA AMENDING CERTAIN SECTIONS OF CHAPTER 18 OF THE SANTA ANA MUNICIPAL CODE PERTAINING TO MEDICAL MARIJUANA COLLECTIVES (SECTION 18-613 AND SECTION 18-617.1 OF ARTICLE XIII OF CHAPTER 18) THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SANTA ANA HEREBY ORDAINS AS FOLLOWS: Section 1. The City Council of the City of Santa Ana hereby finds, determines and declares as follows: A. On November 4, 2014, Santa Ana voters approved Santa Ana's Medical Marijuana Regulatory Program ordinance ("Measure BB") allowing up to twenty (20) medical marijuana retail cannabis collectives/cooperatives ("dispensaries"). B. Following the adoption of Measure BB, the provisions of the measure were codified in Chapters 18 and 21 of the Santa Ana Municipal Code. The City also established an implementation plan, enforcement program, administrative policies, and best practices. C. On June 20, 2017, the City of Santa Ana adopted an Ordinance (Ordinance No. 2918) amending Chapter 18 to allow the following modifications to the existing medical marijuana ordinance/Measure BB: 1. Increased signage opportunities, 2. Increased hours of operation, 3. Eliminate cash reserve limits, 4. Allow delivery services, 5. Guidelines for Financial audit requirements, 6. Adoption of administrative procedures, 7. Added definitions to the ordinance, 8. Allowed Transferability of Collective/Cooperative Business License. The amendments will take effect on August 5, 2017. D. Following the June 20, 2017 City Council adoption of Ordinance No. 2918, additional amendments were identified to address a small error in the signage provisions and to ensure timelier submittal of Regulatory Safety Permit (RSP) applications. E. All provisions of the Santa Ana Municipal Code which are repeated herein are repeated solely in order to comply with the provisions of section 418 of the Charter of the City of Santa Ana. Any such restatement of existing provisions of the Code is not intended, nor shall it be interpreted, as constituting a new action or decision of the City Council, but rather such provisions are repeated for tracking purposes only in conformance with the Charter. Ordinance No, NS -2925 Page 1 of 6 Section 2. Pursuant to the California Environmental Quality Act ("CEQX) and the state CEQA Guidelines, the adoption of this Ordinance is exempt from CEQA review pursuant to California Code of Regulations section 15061(b)(3), which is applicable if it can be seen with certainty that there is no possibility that the project may have a significant effect on the environment. As a result, a Notice of Exemption will be filed upon the adoption of this ordinance. Section 3. Article XIII of Chapter 18 of the Santa Ana Municipal Code, Section 18-613, subdivision (c) is hereby amended to read in full as follows: Sec. 18-613. - Operating Standards. (a) At all times the collective is open, a collective shall provide at least one security guard who is licensed, possesses a valid Department of Consumer Affairs "security guard card", and has a valid Santa Ana Business License. (b) The security guard and collective personnel shall monitor the site and the immediate vicinity of the site to assure that patrons immediately leave the site and not consume medical marijuana in the vicinity of the collective or on the property or in the parking lot. (c) Exterior signage shall comply with Article XI of Chapter 41 of the Santa Ana Municipal Code. Interior signage or advertising may not be visible from the exterior. Collectives and dispensaries must comply with the advertising and marketing provisions of Business and Professions Code §§ 26150-26155. (d) No recommendations from a doctor for medical marijuana shall be issued on-site. (e) There shall be no on-site sales of alcohol or tobacco products, and no on-site consumption of food, alcohol, tobacco or marijuana by patrons. (f) Hours of operation shall be limited to: 7:00 a.m. to 11 p.m. daily. No licensed dispensary/collective shall be open to the public between the hours of 11:01 p.m. and 6:59 a.m. of any day. (g) The property provides a sufficient odor absorbing ventilation and exhaust system so that odor generated inside the property is not detected outside the property, anywhere on adjacent property or public rights-of-way, or within any other unit located within the same building as the collective. (h) A collective shall only dispense medical marijuana to qualified patients and their caregivers as defined by California Health and Safety Code § 11362.5 (Proposition 215). This shall include possession of an original valid doctor's recommendation, not more than one (1) year old, for medical marijuana use by the patient. (i) A collective shall notify patrons of the following both verbally and through posting of a sign in a conspicuous location: (1) Use of medical marijuana shall be limited to the patient identified on the doctor's recommendation. Secondary sale, barter or distribution of medical marijuana is a crime and can lead to arrest. (2) That loitering on and around the collective site is prohibited by California Penal Code § 647(e) and that patrons must immediately leave the site and not Ordinance No, NS -2925 Page 2 of 6 consume medical marijuana in the vicinity of the collective or on the property or in the parking lot, (3) Forgery of medical documents is a felony crime. (4) A warning that patrons may be subject to prosecution under federal marijuana laws. (5) That the use of medical marijuana may impair a person's ability to drive a motor vehicle or operate machinery. (j) A collective shall not provide marijuana to any individual in an amount not consistent with personal medical use. (k) Reserved. (1) No one under twenty-one (21) years of age shall be permitted to enter establishment, unless such person is a qualified patient and is accompanied by his or her primary caregiver, licensed attending physician, parent(s) or documented legal guardian. (m) A collective shall provide the name and phone number of an on-site staff person to the police department and the Code Enforcement Division of the Planning and Building Agency for notification if there are operational problems with the establishment. (n) Each collective operator(s) and employees shall complete a criminal background check. Employees, managers or volunteers may not have been convicted of, or plead guilty/no-contest to a felony or misdemeanor drug charge within the past four (4) years. (o) Marijuana shall not be grown or cultivated at collective sites, except that cuttings of the marijuana plant may be kept or maintained on-site for distribution to qualified patients and primary caregivers as follows: (1) The cuttings shall not be utilized by a collective as a source for the provision of marijuana for consumption on-site, however, upon provision to a qualified patient or primary caregiver, that person may use the cuttings to cultivate marijuana plants off-site for their own use and they may also return marijuana from the resulting mature plant for distribution by the collective. (2) For the purposes of this paragraph, the term "cutting" shall mean a rootless piece cut from a marijuana plant, which is no more than six (6) inches in length, and which can be used to grow another plant in a different location. (p) A collective shall comply with applicable provisions of the California Health and Safety Code §§ 11362.5 through 11362.83, inclusive. (q) If food is distributed, the collective shall comply with all relevant state laws and city ordinances pertaining to the preparation, distribution and sale of food. (r) The location, interior and exterior, shall be monitored at all times by web -based closed-circuit television for security purposes. The camera and recording system must be of adequate quality, color rendition and resolution to allow the ready identification of any individual committing a crime anywhere on or adjacent to the location. The recordings shall be maintained for a period of not less than ninety (90) Ordinance No. NS -2925 Page 3 of 6 days. The police department may request the recordings in connection with an investigation. If the recordings are not voluntarily provided, the police department may seek a warrant or court order for the recordings. (s) The location shall have a centrally -monitored fire and burglar alarm system and the building or the portion of the building where the collective is located shall contain a fire -proof safe. (t) No manufacture of concentrated cannabis in violation of California Health and Safety Code section 11379.6 is allowed. (u) No collective shall operate for profit. Cash and in-kind contributions, reimbursements, and reasonable compensation provided by members towards the collective's actual expenses of the growth, cultivation, and provision of medical marijuana shall be allowed provided that they are in strict compliance with State Law. All such cash and in-kind amounts and items shall be fully documented. (v) If the collective operator is not the owner of the property where the collective is to operate, the operator shall provide evidence that the property owner(s) consent to the operation of a collective on the property. (w) Collectives must obtain and maintain a valid City business license at all times as a condition for receiving, renewing, and maintaining their regulatory safety permit. (x) Occupancy shall not exceed that required under the Uniform Building Code and Uniform Fire Code, and the maximum occupancy load shall be posted at the main entrance. Section 4: Article XIII of Chapter 18 of the Santa Ana Municipal Code, Section 18-617.1, subdivision (e) is hereby amended to read in full as follows: Sec. 18-617.1 - Cooperative/collective registration required. (a) Within 30 days after the adoption of this Chapter, the Director of Planning and Building shall prepare Cooperative/Collective registration application forms and a related administrative policy. Each collective interested in operating pursuant to this article may submit an application together with a non-refundable processing fee in an amount established by the City Council. Within 60 days after the adoption of this article, the Director shall stop accepting applications and process all applications received. (b) The Director or his or her designee shall determine whether each application demonstrates compliance with this article. Each application that is in compliance with this article shall be placed on the "Qualified Registration Applicant List" and the Director shall notify the applicant in writing that it is a "Qualified Registration Applicant." (c) Once all applications are processed, the Director shall hold an independent selection process ("lottery") in an open and public location and select 20 applications. The 20 applications chosen through the independent selection process (lottery) will be placed on the "Regulatory Safety Permit ("RSP") Eligibility List." Each applicant on the RSP Eligibility List may then choose to file an Ordinance No. NS -2925 Page 4 of 6 application for a RSP pursuant to section 18-617.2. Applicants identified on the RSP Eligibility List following the February 5, 2015 independent selection process (lottery) must submit a completed RSP application within four (4) months of April 5, 2016 and no later than August 5, 2016. Failure to submit a completed RSP application by that deadline will disqualify the applicant from the RSP Eligibility List and the Waitlist described in subsection (d). (d) Qualified Registration Applicants will appear on the "Qualified Registration Applicant List" in the order that they are selected during the independent selection process (lottery). This list is the Waitlist. The Waitlist will become active if (1) an applicant on the RSP Eligibility List is disqualified from that List; (2) a location appearing on the RSP Eligibility List becomes available; or (3) a location not appearing on the RSP eligibility list becomes available. A Qualified Registration Applicant's ability to move from the Waitlist to the RSP Eligibility List is determined by the applicant's proposed medical marijuana collective location and the applicant's position on the Waitlist. (e) A Qualified Registration Applicant that moves from the Waitlist to the RSP Eligibility List must submit a completed RSP application within three (3) months following issuance of a written notice advising the applicant of that opportunity. Failure to submit a completed RSP application by that deadline will disqualify the applicant from the RSP Eligibility List and the Waitlist. (f) The Director shall maintain the Waitlist and update it on an annual basis. A Qualified Registration Applicant on that Waitlist must submit a written request each year to maintain its status on the waitlist. The Director may place new applicants on the Waitlist in the order in which the new registration applications are received. Section 5. If any section, subsection, sentence, clause, phrase or portion of this ordinance is for any reason held to be invalid or unconstitutional by the decision of any court of competent jurisdiction, such decision shall not affect the validity of the remaining portions of this ordinance. The City Council of the City of Santa Ana hereby declares that it would have adopted this ordinance and each section, subsection, sentence, clause, phrase or portion thereof irrespective of the fact that any one or more sections, subsections, sentences, clauses, phrases, or portions be declared invalid or unconstitutional. ADOPTED this 3rd day of October, 2017. Ordinance No. NS -2925 Page 5 of 6 APPROVED AS TO FORM Sonia R. Carvalho, City Attorney Lisa Storck Assistant City Attorney AYES: Councilmembers: NOES: Councilmembers: ABSTAIN: Councilmembers: NOT PRESENT: Councilmembers: Benavides Martinez Solorio, Villegas (4) None (0) Sarmiento Tinaiero (2) CERTIFICATE OF ATTESTATION AND ORIGINALITY I, MARIA D. HUIZAR, Clerk of the Council, do hereby attest to and certify that the attached Ordinance No. NS -2925 to be the original ordinance adopted by the City Council of the City of Santa Ana on October 3 2017, and that said ordinance was published in accordance with the Charter of the City of Santa Ana. Date: Ordinance No. NS -2925 Page 6 of 6 Mara D. Huiz� Clerk of the Council City of Santa Ana