CITY COUNCIL BACK-PEDALS ON MEDI-POT ORDINANCE

Panel Also Votes to Retain Redevelopment Agency

"We're being bullied."

That was the general feeling conveyed at Tuesday night's City Council
meeting related to medical marijuana, the "we" being the city and the
bully being the federal government. Under vague threats of
prosecution-city staff, including council members, could go to jail
for conspiracy, according to U.S. Attorney Benjamin Wagner-the
council backed down, voting to repeal the dispensary ordinance it
passed just last month.

"When you get a letter from the U.S. attorney addressed to yourself,
that really opens your eyes," said Mayor Ann Schwab. She was
referring to the letter Wagner sent her just days before the council
approved the ordinance July 5. "The eyes of the federal government
are on us as elected officials."

City staff tended to agree. City Manager Dave Burkland and City
Attorney Lori Barker made a trip last month to Wagner's Sacramento
office to try to understand better what the city could do to keep
from being prosecuted. Neither could offer any specifics gleaned from
the meeting, other than the dispensaries' facility size seemed to be
an important factor. The message that did get through, loud and
clear, was that city officials could face prosecution for conspiracy
by allowing for facilities meant for the manufacture and distribution
of marijuana.

"I don't understand how a conspiracy charge could be held up,"
countered Councilman Andy Holcombe, also an attorney. He pointed to
several ways in which the ordinance could be reworded to clearly
state the intent of the law is to provide safe access to medicine for
seriously ill patients. "It really comes down to intent."

Surprisingly, only 16 members of the public showed up to offer their
opinions on the matter, and they varied from members of the Chico
Police Officers Association, which has already come out publicly
against the ordinance, to those involved in local dispensaries, who
pleaded for the ability to offer a safe, legal way for patients to
obtain their medicine.

Some, like Chamber of Commerce President Jolene Francis, suggested
that not repealing the ordinance would be "calling their bluff."
Others, like local blogger Quentin Colgan, considered repeal nothing
short of cowardice. "This is when we need the City Council to stand
up for us-stand up to the bully," he said.

"We are being bullied. But we're being bullied by the federal
government," acknowledged Vice Mayor Jim Walker. "I don't like this
at all. I think we should take a breath and revisit this-maybe six
months is the right amount of time to do that."

Holcombe shot back: "We've taken enough breaths; it's time to exhale.
We're not thumbing our noses at anyone-this is about protecting sick
people. I think we can-and should-stand up to the bully."

In the end, though a majority of the council seemed to agree that
some sort of similar ordinance ought to be in place at some point, a
motion to repeal by Councilman Mark Sorensen carried 4-3, with
council members Holcombe, Scott Gruendl and Mary Flynn-who posed the
curious question of how Chico happened on the U.S. Attorney's radar
in the first place-dissenting.

Though that might seem like enough fun for one evening, there was
plenty more on the agenda-though nothing quite as juicy (though
Walker gets props for using the word "antidisestablishmentarianism"
accurately in a sentence).

The future of the Chico Redevelopment Agency was put before the
council, with two options on how to proceed: Keep it as is but pay a
large mandatory fee, mostly toward education; or disband it
altogether and receive about $1.6 million for the general fund. Staff
recommended the former, as it would allow the city to retain control
over redevelopment properties and projects and would, in the future,
continue to earn money through property taxes for future projects.

"We'll be paying a short-term price for a long-term benefit," Schwab
said, referring to the one-time $10.7 million fee. "The RDA gives us
leverage to put projects together that, annually, provide 150
private-sector jobs-that's a great investment in our community."

The council voted unanimously to continue the RDA as is. They can
vote to dissolve it at any time in the future.

In other news, the council approved an ordinance calling for
mandatory no-wood-burning days when air quality is poor, 5-2, with
Councilmen Sorensen and Bob Evans dissenting.