Medical marijuana companies are gearing up for interviews with the city of Salinas as it prepares for the coming of the cannabis industry.
The city has scheduled interviews with all applicants over the next three weeks with a committee made up of city staff and consultants. The committee comprises Community Development Director Megan Hunter, Finance Director Matt Pressey, Economic Development Manager Andy Myrick and two consultants from HdL — Hinderliter, de Llamas & Associates, an agency that provides audits, analytical services and software products to help cities, counties and special districts.
City Attorney Chris Callihan said the interviews will help narrow the field of the best-qualified applicants who can move on to the next phase of the vetting process which will be a community meeting(s).
The city has 24 applicants, broken down as eight applicants for cultivation, eight for dispensary, four for manufacturing and four for delivery.
Last January, the city approved an ordinance allowing and regulating the use of medical marijuana in the city. The ordinance allows for a total of 12 permits, three permits each for dispensaries, growing operations, distribution/delivery systems and pot product manufacturing. In May, City Council greenlighted guidelines for the industry.
Applicants such as Monterey Bay Alternative Medicine (MBAM) have been focused on moving through the application process, and prepping for their interview. Lonna and Robert Blodgett, owners of MBAM in Del Rey Oaks, the only medical marijuana dispensary in Monterey County, have seen business grow since launching in April 2015.
Lonna Blodgett said starting a branch in Salinas was a natural move for us, since 20% of their roughly 20,000 patients are from Salinas. In addition, a third of their 40 employees are from Salinas and the Blodgetts themselves split their time between Salinas and southern California.
Lonna Blodgett said the Salinas dispensary, located at Moffett Street adjacent to the Salinas Municipal Airport, will include cultivation.
We want everything to replicate our model there (Del Rey Oaks). We want the same community feel, the same caring patient feel in our dispensary, she said.
The majority of MBAMs customers are from the county with some from Santa Cruz County. The Blodgetts anticipate launching the Salinas business with roughly 25 staff.
Existing cannabis businesses in Salinas, such as Altai Brands, need to go through the application process, too.
Rob Weakley, co-founder and CEO of Altai — a medical pot manufacturing company that specializes in pot-infused candies and chocolates said the company has had a positive impact since it opened a 15,000-square-foot warehouse facility in June 2015.
Altai has well over 400 clients, primarily through dispensaries, across the state.
Since May 2016, its staff has grown from 28 full-time staff to 57, and it is in hiring mode — actively recruiting professionals in manufacturing, accounting, and seeking a distribution manager. Weakley, a resident of Morgan Hill, said his preference is to hire local or recruit professionals to Salinas.
Im optimistic and excited it will be an industry that impacts the city in a positive way with tax dollars, he said.
Municipalities prepare
Cannabis is a timely topic in Monterey County where proponents — including local elected officials — expect cannabis to generate tax revenue and further contribute to economic development. According to Callihan, Salinas stands to take anywhere between $1 million to $2 million in new revenue annually from the new tax. The city is hopeful that the industry will stimulate more job growth.
Many voters in the state and in Monterey County are supportive of the industry, too. Salinas Measure L and county Measure Y, commercial cannabis taxes, passed during the during the Nov. 8 election. Proposition 64, which makes it legal for people to use and cultivate marijuana for personal use, was also voted in.
Callihan said the city has not accepted any additional applications beyond those received just before the July 6 deadline. He added that the city may re-open the application process, depending on the results of this first vetting of applicants.
News Moderator: Katelyn Baker
Full Article: Pot Industry Preps For Interviews
Author: Amy Wu
Contact: (831) 424-2221
Photo Credit: Amy Wu
Website: The Californian
