REDLANDS >> The Planning Commission on Tuesday wrestled with a proposed change in the city’s medical marijuana laws.
Medical marijuana dispensaries are prohibited in the city. The city code does not address the cultivation, processing, delivery and distribution of medical cannabis, according to the report.
City staff is proposing the city’s code ban these activities in the city.
The Planning Commission on Tuesday postponed the issue to January and asked that the city attorney and police chief be present to answer several questions that arose during the meeting.
Commissioner Patrick Wallis said he is against the change because of the impact it could have on disabled veterans, like himself, who have found medical marijuana to work in alleviating their pain.
“I think about those people when I see this issue and it actually upsets me,” he said. “Why are we stepping in here where there’s a state law in effect? Why do we have to stick our nose in here? I guess other people in town feel differently and they want to go ahead and further regulate this and take away the rights that the state’s already bestowed to other similar veterans, and not veterans, through this law.”
In October, Gov. Jerry Brown signed the Medical Marijuana Regulation and Safety Act, which establishes a comprehensive licensing and regulatory framework for the cultivation, transportation, storage, manufacture, distribution and sale of medical cannabis, necessary to address a wide range of environmental, land use, and health and safety issues, according to the city staff report.
The state will become the sole authority regulating cultivation in the city if the city’s code is not changed by March 1, according to the staff report.
Planning commissioners had questions about what kind of delivery would be banned, whether it would be commercial, pharmaceutical or personal delivery of medical marijuana.
Commission Vice Chairman Ken Jeske said he could not support the banning of individual or pharmaceutical delivery of medical marijuana to a person.
Commission Chairwoman Carol Dyer said she wanted to know more about how the ordinance could be used by law enforcement to address, for example, youths with medical marijuana cards who transport medical marijuana into the city from another city.
“I see some value in controlling transport to protect our community and protect our children, frankly,” she said.
Commissioner Julie Rock said this is a very complicated issue and there is a lot wrong with the state’s medical marijuana law.
“But, we have an awful lot of people in our community who are suffering from cancer, people who have founded our Believe Walk and do a tremendous amount for health whose pain and issues are eased by this,” she said. “So I think there’s a role for it in our community and I think we need to be very, very careful about what we do here.”
The commission will look at the issue again in January.
