Monday, December 9, 2024

Former Mendocino Supervisor Concerned Recent Draft of Cannabis Regulations Will ‘Undermine Existing Neighborhood Protections’

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In what amounts to a bait and switch, Supervisors Haschak and Williams recommend opening up every neighborhood to dramatically expanded cannabis cultivation.

On Monday January 25, in line with previous direction, the Board will consider a proposed land use based permitting system for cannabis cultivation.

Unfortunately, Supervisor Williams and Haschak are taking the opportunity to overturn previous Board direction and eliminate every meaningful protection for neighborhoods.

If this passes in it’s current form it will throw every residential neighborhood under the bus by allowing 12 outdoor plants without setbacks.

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The original version posted with the agenda (the “bait”) kept the current exemptions and setbacks in place. These restrictions were hammered out over the last 10+ years and were intended to allow for the legal cultivation of cannabis without tearing neighborhoods apart.

The “Final Draft” (the “switch”) was posted last night and eviscerated the restrictions in the exemptions and threw out the setbacks, substantially eliminating protections for residential neighborhoods.

In place of 100 square feet grown indoors with setbacks from property lines and residences, anyone who can claim 2 exemptions will now be able to grow 12 plants of any size (some “plants” exceed 15′ in height and 150 square feet of canopy) outdoors right under someone’s bedroom window.

It’s baffling to me why Supervisors Williams and Haschak are proposing to throw out these carefully crafted neighborhood protections and open the door to renewed neighborhood conflict.

I was initially very impressed by how faithfully the proposed ordinance follows Board direction to craft a land use based permit system that allows for expansion as well as permits in Rangeland, subject to a land use permit.

I know the issues of expansion and new permits in Rangeland are controversial but that is where the discussion should take place.

Without Board direction Supervisors Williams and Haschak have opened up issues that have been debated and decided multiple times with the same result every time.

I’m concerned that this backdoor attempt to undermine existing neighborhood protections will distract from and possibly jeopardize the need to enact critical reforms needed to put the industry on a sustainable footing in Mendocino County.

This ploy may succeed but at the cost of residential quality of life and a sustainable cannabis industry.

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-John McCowen

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5 COMMENTS

  1. John needs to acuse himself from anything cannabis related. His lobbied rules are getting tossed, because they were misleading BS in the first place. And now they are being changed to help others. Not fear monger like he is trying to do here. Why is he in a lawsuit? He basically wants his cake and to eat it too.

  2. Opening Rangeland to is greedy and shortsighted. Where is all that water going to come from? Salmon find their way back to spawn in the waters they hatched from by smell. More imported water means more change in smell. The salmon have it hard enough already. How can Fish and Wildlife allow this to occur. Will commercial growers be permitted to put up hoop houses, greenhouses, warehouses fir indoor grows. More fencing, more wildlife barriers. Cows get along well in wilder, wildlife habitats. Corporate grow scenes do not.

  3. McGowan shouldn’t be allowed within a million miles of anything cannabis related. Its thanks to him we have a complete and total failure of a local cannabis permit program and that illegal cultivation has exploded. Don’t forget he took a TON of money from big out of area corporate cannabis companies like Flo Kana and has consistently fought against a CEQA program for the county that not only prevents local cultivators from obtaining a state permit but ensure there is no environmental reviews here. McGowan doesn’t give a damn about the people who live here and never has, the only thing he care about is who is lining his pockets with bribe money.

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Matt LaFever
Matt LaFeverhttps://mendofever.com/
For the past seven years, Matt LaFever has covered the North Coast of California in both print and radio news. A Humboldt State graduate, he has lived in the Emerald Triangle for nearly 20 years. His reporting spans local issues like crime and wildfires. When not writing, Matt is an avid outdoorsman, exploring Northern California’s rugged landscapes. Reach out to him at matthewplafever@gmail.com.

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