By Bruce McPherson, County Supervisor 5th District
Santa Cruz County has a long history of growing marijuana and a reputation for having some of best, most innovative growers of medical cannabis. There have been growers in the Santa Cruz Mountains for decades, and I expect there will be for decades to come.
However, what our community doesn’t need are the “green rush” speculators who have transformed neighborhoods, deforested and graded our hillsides, and sucked our creeks dry.
Two years ago, I asked the Board of Supervisors to adopt a cannabis cultivation ordinance. The hope was to regulate growers in order to prevent environmental degradation but still allow the cultivation of marijuana for medical cannabis patients. We also adopted an ordinance placing limitations on medical cannabis dispensaries, and I believe the dispensary ordinance has worked well.
Unfortunately, there were unintended consequences from the cultivation ordinance. Neighboring residents were impacted by smells, generator noise, bright growing lights, traffic, and crime. Enforcement could not keep up with the number of cultivations. Moreover, the ordinance was largely ignored by growers, many of who moved from out of state to Santa Cruz County because of our reputation as a good place to grow.
The Board of Supervisors has considered a number of different “fix-it” scenarios for the cultivation ordinance since the original ordinance was adopted. Growers were also asked to recommend changes but couldn’t agree on a uniform proposal.
After seeing a drastic increase in the number of illegal cannabis cultivation sites (up from 84 in September 2014 to more than 145 today), County attorneys, the Sheriff, and the County Administrative Officer finally — and reluctantly — recommended that the best option was to repeal the commercial cultivation ordinance but still allow the 10 square foot personal grows for patients or their caregivers. I was among the Board majority that agreed with that recommendation.
(However, I expressed my opposition to any increase in the Cannabis Business Tax rate currently paid by dispensaries, and the Board did not take action to increase that rate.)
Here’s why I supported repealing our ordinance. First, I believe there will still be an ample supply of medical cannabis for patients. Dispensaries are not limited to a few suppliers. The 10 square foot grows allowed for personal use are still the largest personal grows permitted in California.
Second, I also believe that the growers who are “doing it right” and not causing problems for their neighbors or the environment will not be affected. Sheriff Jim Hart has said many times that he is not interested in filling the jail with growers. No one wants to see the small mom and pop growers harmed. At the same time, the new ordinance means that the Sheriff will be able to devote staff time and resources to pursuing growers who are degrading our neighborhoods and environment.
In 2016 it’s expected that there will be at least one state ballot measure seeking to legalize marijuana for recreational use. We don’t know what the measure will say or whether voters will approve what is ultimately proposed. (Colorado residents are reportedly having second thoughts on legalization of recreational marijuana.) However, I do know that the discussion is not done. As long as there are contradictory federal and state laws regarding marijuana, we will not have a cohesive set of regulations.
While we wait to see what happens on the state and federal levels, I fully expect that good growers in Santa Cruz County will continue to grow and innovate. I also hope that the growers who are disruptive to our community and disrespectful of the environment will pull up their plants and leave.