Modesto church opposed nearby cannabis outlet. The county vote was unanimous
From an outlet on Lone Palm Avenue tucked away in an industrial zone in Modesto, the People’s Remedy has provided cannabis products for adults and patients with medical needs.
Co-owner Mark Ponticelli has made a public stance for doing things right and making cannabis a legitimate enterprise in Stanislaus County. But the People’s Remedy ran into a stumbling block in seeking one of the 61 commercial cannabis permits allowed by the county.
The dispensary is next door to or just 89 feet from a church and K-12 private school. A county ordinance and state law require at least 600 feet distance between a cannabis business and a school.
County supervisors, on a 5-0 vote Tuesday, essentially turned down the People’s Remedy request for a waiver of the 600-foot rule, but gave the dispensary until late January to find another location.
“I don’t know how it got this far (in the county permitting process),” said Board of Supervisors Chairman Terry Withrow, noting he would never support a dispensary near a school.
Under the medical co-op provisions of state law, the dispensary has operated since 2015 in an older industrial area off Woodland Avenue, just east of Highway 99. Originally, the owners didn’t realize a school was operated in the New Harvest Christian Fellowship in a metal building next door, and they tried without success to contact church leaders about the permit application, county staff said.
The People’s Remedy made a case to waive the 600-foot rule by trying to show it has not created hassles for the church and school.
Only three times in four years were sheriff deputies called to the site — twice for accidental ‘panic button” activations on the store’s security system and once for a burglary attempt before the store had onsite security.
Proponents said the store’s 24/7 security today has a positive impact for neighboring businesses. Four of them signed letters supporting the dispensary.
Alan Layman, a nearby business owner, countered the marijuana outlet does not have enough parking for its employees and customers.
Levi Romero, an assistant pastor for New Harvest Christian Fellowship, said he works with church members who are former addicts and it’s not compatible to have a marijuana outlet next door.
Romero said he has seen dispensary customers urinate on the side of the church building. Other customers smelling of marijuana have asked to use the restrooms during school hours, he said.
In addition, a dispensary employee started attending church services and tried to solicit business from church members, the assistance pastor said.
According to its website, the People’s Remedy has three other stores — on McHenry Avenue in Modesto, in Oakdale and in Patterson.
Since 2004, the school attendance at New Harvest Christian Fellowship has ranged between eight and 40 students, and 19 attended the school in 2018-19.
People’s Remedy staff said the dispensary has helped people who suffer from Parkinson’s disease, anxiety and depression and post traumatic stress disorder. Almost 30 families would be affected if the store closes and employees lose their jobs.
The owner of the store building said that, with the rental payments from People’s Remedy, he is able to meet payroll for his small trucking business.
Modesto attorney George Petrulakis, representing the dispensary, said the permit application met the standards for parking and the business has been a good neighbor.
Supervisor Kristin Olsen said she wished the church neighbors had come forward earlier to discuss concerns.
By giving the dispensary more time to find a location that meets requirements, Petrulakis said, his clients won’t have a blanket permit denial on their record, though they may have to consider possible sites inside the city.
A development agreement for the Lone Palm store could have provided $3.5 million in fees to the county over five years just from the retail sales. Fees tied to distribution activity could have generated $150,000.
This story was originally published December 11, 2019 at 6:19 AM.
