08 Sep San Pablo Moves Nearer to Opening First Cannabis Shops

(Screenshot captured by Samantha Kennedy / The CC Pulse)

By Samantha Kennedy

San Pablo moved one step closer to opening its first cannabis retailers, which could generate more than $2 million in tax revenue for the city. 

The San Pablo City Council on Sept. 2 unanimously gave three operators the go-ahead to apply for permits that would allow them to sell cannabis at a retail location within city limits. 

“Our slogan is the ‘City of New Directions,’ so hopefully tonight, history will be made to invite our first cannabis clubs here in San Pablo,” Mayor Arturo Cruz said ahead of the vote. 

Staff recommended that Embarc, Stiiizy and Off the Charts-San Pablo Dam Road be allowed to apply for the permits, citing the three as the most eligible of the six total applicants. Embarc, Off the Charts and Stiiizy all operate dispensaries at multiple locations.

Applicants were ranked based on their experience, qualifications, community benefits, plans for local hiring, financial stability, proposal clarity, and location suitability. 

The possible city retailers come after voters passed Measure M with more than 72% of the vote in November, which allows the city to place up to a 7% tax on the gross receipts of cannabis retailers. 

Officials first placed the measure on the ballot to diversify the city’s revenue as it faced an almost $9 million deficit over the next three years. The initial tax placed on businesses would be 5%, according to officials. 

At the time of the election, 30 cannabis retailers were operating in West Contra Costa County. Almost all of those — 27 retailers — were in Richmond. 

The number of cannabis retailers in West Contra Costa is significantly less than that in Alameda County, which is more than 400. 

“From a market standpoint,” City Manager Matt Rodriguez said when council members placed the measure on the ballot, “there is sufficient capacity” for the tax. 

The city previously opposed the sale of cannabis within the city, prohibiting its sale and writing a letter in opposition to Prop. 64, which legalized the use of cannabis for those 21 and older in California. San Pablo voters veered away from the officials’ stance and supported the effort. 

Council member Abel Pineda, who noted the steps taken since then, said that there was still “a lot of work that can be done.”