Temporary moratorium passed on medical marijuana facilities

The Fairfax Town Council approved an ordinance to place a moratorium on medical marijuana dispensaries until after the council is able to respond to the November election, when voters will consider Proposition 19 – which would legalize small amounts of marijuana for adults over 21.

"We will have a whole new set of rules to write [if Prop. 19 passes] and it will certainly change the character of the existing medical marijuana facility," said Mayor Lew Tremaine.

"We're in a shifting legal landscape and we need to be agile in responding to it," said council member Larry Bragman.

Tremaine brought the issue to the council following two applications for medical marijuana dispensaries on the west end of town along Sir Francis Drake, which were denied by the planning commission three weeks ago. Both facilities were denied due to the lack of parking and because the commissioners felt it wasn't the best location, said Planning Commissioner Pam Meigs.

But, the fact that two medical marijuana dispensaries wanted to come into town lead Tremaine to realize that the town needs to more fully consider the rules and regulations it has to govern medical marijuana facilities.

"What we learned is that we don't have our act together," he said.

Fairfax currently has one licensed medical marijuana facility – The Marin Alliance for Medical Marijuana on School Street. That facility has been operating since 1997 and, despite a number of other medical marijuana facilities in the county, the Fairfax facility is the only town-licensed, fully-permitted, legal facility in Marin.

Earlier this year, it became one of the first facilities in the country to have fully-licensed and permitted medical marijuana delivery.

The process to regulate that use permit, a number of council members said, was extensive and time-consuming and highlighted the amount of work that will be necessary to craft new regulations should Prop. 19 pass in November.

However, a number of medical-marijuana advocates said that Prop. 19 will deal with recreational marijuana not medical marijuana.

"Will marijuana be available a 7-11? At a café? It has nothing to do with patients growing their own medicines for themselves," said Scot Candell, an attorney who represented one of the two earlier facility applications.

Candell said that he agreed with the planning commission's decision and that the proposed location was not appropriate for his client's facility. But, he felt that a moratorium – however temporary – essentially buttresses the current monopoly in town. He said that his client was even given advice about better locations for a competing facility.

Customers who are unhappy with the Marin Alliance of Medical Marijuana – and one former patient alleged he had experienced threats from employees – "have nowhere else to go," said Candell.

The initial ordinance proposed by Tremaine was an urgency ordinance, which would have been enacted immediately and would have imposed a 45-day moratorium.

However, a number of council members felt that valid points were raised over the need to address the monopoly in town and to encourage rules for legitimate businesses.

"At this point, I'm having a hard time understanding the urgency," said council member Pam Hartwell-Herrero.

Ultimately, the council approved a regular ordinance placing a moratorium on new medical marijuana facilities. That ordinance will be heard and considered again on second reading in October. After second reading, the ordinance will go into effect 30 days later. Town attorney Jim Karpiak said, though, that any new facility that submits an application for a permit would likely not be considered by the planning commission until after the ordinance went into effect -- if the council approves it upon second reading.

The ordinance was approved with a 4-1 vote, with Hartwell-Herrero voting against it.

Correction: An earlier version of the article incorrectly stated the immediate effect of the ordinance.