Editor’s note: The print edition of this article did not include a quite from Councilmember Leih Mulvilhill, which came after print deadline.
The Black Diamond City Council proposing zoning requirements for marijuana retailers, but wants to hear from the public first.
During the Oct. 3 council session, elected officials discussed where within the city’s various residential, business, and industrial zones a marijuana retailer (and producers/processors) can operate, and what sort of buffer needs to be established between retailers and various other businesses.
The question at hand: should there be a 1,000-foot buffer between marijuana retailers and specific kinds of business and facilities, like child care centers and public parks? Or should it be reduced to the minimum of 100 feet?
The council decided to put forth a proposed 100-foot buffer, though there was some opposition that supported a larger distance.
This proposal is not set in stone, and the public has an opportunity to sway council vote at the Nov. 7 meeting, scheduled for 7 p.m.
THE DISCUSSION
Any marijuana retailers that want to operate within Black Diamond will be limited to two zoning areas: Community Commercial and Neighborhood Center.
Community Commercial (CC) is for businesses and facilities like various personal and professional services, religious institutions, lodging, vet clinics, public use facilities, and more; Neighborhood Center zones allow for grocery stores and small retailers, personal services, general offices, and entertainment facilities.
The biggest swath of the Community Commercial zone follows state Route 169 north from Roberts Drive; this includes the Black Diamond Community Center, The Vault Taphouse, Bistro & Beer Garden, Gracene’s Cupcake Boutique, Namaste Mart, and several other businesses, but also more than a few undeveloped parcels of land, partial or whole.
The other Community Commercial zone is further south on SR 169, between 2nd Avenue and the Black Diamond Police Department; think Italian Fresh Pizza, Creative Coffee Brewing, and Cenex.
Finally, the Neighborhood Center zone is limited to ten parcels just west of the Roberts Drive and Morgan Street intersection, where Redline Mechanical and AES, Inc. operate.
It’s inside those zones where the debate happened.
The state requires all marijuana retailers must be at least 1,000 feet away from any schools and playgrounds. This could potentially mean excluding any marijuana retailers from opening up near Creative Coffee Brewing or Italian Fresh Pizza, if any opportunity arises.
But cities can decide how large of a property line-to-property line buffer (to a minimum of 100 feet) should be enforced between pot shops and other select businesses and facilities.
These include “recreation centers or facilities, child care centers, public parks, public transit centers, libraries, and any game arcade where admission is not restricted to persons twenty-one years of age or older,” according to a draft zoning matrix.
It should be noted that very few — if any — child care centers or related businesses operate in the Community Commercial zones, though again, one CC zone borders an elementary school and skate park.
Advocating to have a 1,000-foot barrier for all applicable businesses and facilities were Councilmembers Leih Mulvihill and Tamie Deady. Mulvihill and Deady have consistently pushed back against Black Diamond lifting its ban on marijuana businesses, and were the only “no” votes last January when the city council decided to allow its ban to expire January 2025.
”My belief in the 1000 foot buffer is three fold, one is because some residents have expressed their concerns of having a dispensary within such a small community; two, I have a young family member that has been severely affected by it’s use and three I believe protecting young minds is very, very important,” Mulvihill said in an email interview. “Then there is the danger factor. Dispensary’s because of their very nature are prone to violent break-ins… Our residents want to live in a safe viable community and that is what I want to give them.”
Councilmembers Debbie Page, Kristiana de Leon, Nathan Jones and Brad Douglass all voiced their support for a 100-foot barrier.
Page, who has spearheaded the effort to overturn the marijuana ban, said that a 1,000-foot buffer would discourage marijuana retailers from considering their city, as it could make it extremely difficult — if not impossible — to comply with such a restriction.
“If we say anything more than 100 feet, we are potentially undoing over a year’s worth of work,” she said.
Additionally, she said that there are several economic reasons why the barrier should be small — that it would be more attractive to retailers, make retailers more accessible to consumers, and potentially increase foot traffic to other nearby businesses, all of which would help bring in tax dollars to the city’s coffers.
In response, Deady said that having marijuana retailers could dissuade other businesses from opening in the Community Commercial zones.
“If I’m opening up a child care center, I’m not going to do it next to a marijuana shop, for sure,” she said.
In a later interview, Page said that this shouldn’t be an either-or situation.
“Our city, like many others, needs to accommodate various types of businesses to serve our diverse community and maintain a healthy local economy,” she continued. “I believe we can have the growth of essential services like childcare while also permitting other legal businesses, including marijuana retail, to operate in appropriate locations. It’s not about choosing one over the other.”
HOW TO ATTEND THE MEETING
With the Black Diamond City Council putting forward a 100-foot barrier proposal, it’s now time for the public to weigh in.
That opportunity is Nov. 7 at 7 p.m.
You can attend in person or connect via zoom; the link can be found at the top of the meeting agenda packet, which can be found online at blackdiamondwa.gov/home/pages/minutes-agendas.
After the public hearing, an official vote on the buffer limit must take place before the new year, which is when Black Diamond’s marijuana ban expires.
