City HMB Reveals the Commercial Cannabis Nursery Ordinance

A public hearing and first reading has been scheduled for a proposed ordinance to license and regulate limited commercial greenhouse cultivation of immature, non-flowering cannabis nursery plants, on limited sites in Half Moon Bay. Also at that meeting, the City Council will discuss and consider possible advisory ballot measures for the November 6, 2018, election, to seek guidance on other cannabis operations such as retail sales, manufacturing, and cultivation of mature plants.

The City Council meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, June 5, 2018, 7 pm, Ted Adcock Community Center, 535 Kelly Avenue.

This proposed cannabis nursery ordinance is a result of City Council direction at its November 21, 2017 meeting. An initial draft was made available for comment on February 23, and since then comments have been received through the City’s website as well as from other direct input to the City.

An updated draft cannabis nursery ordinance is available for public review online at www.hmbcity.com/cannabis.

The staff report will be available online by the end of the day on Friday, June 1.

Under the ordinance, the nurseries could only grow non-flowering cannabis plants that would be transported out of the City before they matured. No retail sales to the public would be allowed. The proposed ordinance would also update and continue the City’s existing prohibition on all other commercial cannabis businesses within Half Moon Bay.

The first reading of the draft ordinance will include opportunity for public comment, and City Council discussion. Community input and City Council direction on the potential for future advisory ballot measures regarding other commercial cannabis activities in Half Moon Bay will be a separate discussion at this meeting.

The City is encouraging community feedback and comments on the draft cannabis nursery ordinance – please use the comment form above. This information will be considered by staff in finalizing the draft ordinance and will be provided to the City Council at a future public meeting, which will include additional opportunity for public comment, City Council discussion, and potential direction on the first reading and consideration of the ordinance at a public hearing.

As a separate process, the City is researching the implications of other types of commercial cannabis operations, including retail activities. Once that research is complete, a second, separate community information and input process will take place including community meetings and a survey.

Podcast with Keiki’s Nursery

Listen to Keiki’s (Hawaiian for small) Nursery’s Dustin Cline and Eric Hollister who are partnering with John and Eda Muller. Allow them to take you through their business plan.

They will only be growing “starts”.
They will sell their “starts” to cannabis flower growers and UC research.
They will hire locally.
Their workers will make more than they do now working in the current agricultural economy.
Their workers will have benefits.
Phase 2 will create “tiny-home” housing for their workers.
Phase 3 will offer retail sales of coastally grown vegetables and starts.
They will be leasing their greenhouse and land from Farmer John and his wife, Eda.