While recreational marijuana is legal in California, the San Luis Obispo City Council will determine if the City wants to allow the sale, manufacturing and cultivation of marijuana in the city of San Luis Obispo May 1, according to City Manager Derek Johnson.
The meeting will begin at 6 p.m. at City Hall, and will be the last item on the evening’s agenda. The public hearing will focus on cannabis operators’ permits and a land use regulation ordinance.
If recreational marijuana sales are approved, members of the community should expect to see the repeal of the current ban on commercial cannabis business. The city will also go over cannabis zoning within the city.
Director of Community Development Michael Codron explained how cities and counties across the state do not have to evaluate the environmental effects associated with individual ordinances.
“As part of its efforts to create a new, statewide regulatory system for cannabis business operations, the state created a new statutory exemption from the California Environmental Quality Act,” Codron wrote in an email to Mustang News.
This allows jurisdictions, like the City of San Luis Obispo, to develop local regulations specific to its environment without having to go through a time-consuming and costly environmental review process.
If approved, the council will also establish standards “to protect public health and safety regulating personal cannabis cultivation, cannabis business operators, and permitted cannabis business activities in the City,” according to the Council’s agenda.
Associated Students, Inc. (ASI) Secretary of Student Excellence Camron Dennler said when it comes to issues that impact the Cal Poly student body, it’s important for students to understand them.
“If a student feels strongly enough about an issue, I would highly encourage them to voice their opinions at a City Council meeting,” Dennler said. “Speaking at these meetings is one of the most direct and clear ways to address our city’s policymakers with our concerns.”
Students and community members are invited to attend these council meetings, which take place every first and third Tuesdays of each month at 6 p.m. The agenda for tomorrow night’s meeting can be found here.