Novato is considering changes to how close certain cannabis businesses can set up shop near neighborhoods, schools and day care centers.
On Tuesday, the City Council directed staff to draft amendments that would further restrict where cannabis delivery businesses can be located but expand where cannabis testing labs can set up.
Novato’s existing regulations, adopted in 2019, prohibit cannabis businesses from being within 600 feet of youth centers, which are defined as any site used “only to host recreation or social activities for minors.”
Under the changes proposed on Tuesday, delivery shops would also be prohibited from being within 600 feet of residential areas. For testing labs, the council proposes to reduce the setback to 300 feet or less.
Both proposals were prompted by circumstances related to two business applications.
The idea to add a new 600-foot setback from residential areas was prompted by backlash to a proposed cannabis delivery service in the San Marin neighborhood. The service, Highway 420, was among the first four businesses the City Council approved under its recreational cannabis program.
Highway 420 owners Justin Pool and Jennifer Durham, who live in Novato, proposed 205 San Marin Drive as the location but withdrew the idea after receiving strong pushback from nearby residents. Neighbors said the location is too close to kids at San Marin High School and the Rolling Hills Club.
Under the city’s rules, any cannabis delivery service in the city, including Highway 420, would not be open to the public and no products could be bought at the location. The city also determined the site complied with the required 600-foot setback from youth centers, including the high school and the club.
Other neighbors raised concerns about the business attracting crime. Earlier this year, Novato police Chief Matthew McCaffrey said crime related to cannabis businesses is often proportionate to the amount of crime that already exists in an area. San Marin’s crime rates were low, he said.
Other critics said all cannabis businesses should be located away from residential areas and limited to industrial areas such as Bel Marin Keys. Cannabis delivery is allowed to be located in areas zoned for business and professional offices.
In response to the public backlash, Councilwoman Susan Wernick, who represents the San Marin neighborhood and opposed the Highway 420 license, asked the council to change its rules to avoid similar confrontations. The council voted unanimously in favor of creating a 600-foot buffer from residential neighborhoods. The proposal will require review by the Planning Commission before coming back to the council for a final vote.
Reached on Wednesday, Pool said while he respects the opinions of residents who opposed the location, he said many of the concerns are misinformed.
He and Durham have yet to find a new location or a willing landlord in the city since withdrawing from the San Marin Drive site in February.
“I say ‘cannabis’ and they run,” Pool said.
The City Council also voted unanimously on Tuesday to direct staff to draft amendments that would reduce required setbacks for cannabis testing labs.
Testing labs also must comply with the 600-foot setback from youth centers. That posed an issue for CB Labs, a testing laboratory that has been allowed to operate under the city’s medical marijuana regulations since 2016. However, the lab’s location at 1615 Hill Road is within 600 feet of the Hill Education Center at the Hill Recreation Area and therefore is unable to apply for a permit despite being in business for five years. The lab’s permit with the city is set to expire in December unless it can secure a license before then.
To address this, the council proposes to give the city discretion to establish setbacks for testing labs at a maximum of 300 feet to a minimum of zero feet. The change is being considered based on the security restrictions already imposed on testing laboratories and the minimal amount of cannabis products stored at labs.
“I just don’t think that minors are going to inadvertently stumble into a testing lab,” Community Development Department Director Vicki Parker told the council. “I think they’re a fairly low-risk operation.”
Mayor Pat Eklund agreed and proposed requiring no setbacks whatsoever. Mayor Pro Tem Eric Lucan raised the idea of a range of setbacks that the council can choose from in case of future pushback similar to that of San Marin.
“We didn’t think there would be that much community concern and there was a lot of community concern,” Lucan said. “I anticipate that if a testing lab wanted to open adjacent to a school, we would hear some similar concerns — warranted or not, we would hear them.”
Reached Wednesday, CB Labs owner Scot Candell said, “I’m grateful to the City Council for giving us an opportunity to continue to serve the cannabis community by doing testing to make sure cannabis is safe.”
The setback proposal also will require review by the Planning Commission before coming back to the council for a vote.
The city plans to open its second round of cannabis business license applications this fall.
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