HomeMy WebLinkAbout2/19/2019 Item Public Comment, Cronin
From:wendy cronin <
To:Harmon, Heidi; E-mail Council Website
Subject:Cannabis Business Transparency
Heidi Harmon February 19, 2019
Mayor
City of San Luis Obispo
Mayor Harmon –
As a long-time resident of the Central Coast, I was struck by an article published in Cal Coast News on Monday, February
18, 2019 titled “Are SLO officials skirting laws to protect marijuana kingpin?” As you are likely aware, the article makes
numerous allegations of a disturbing lack of transparency in SLO’s cannabis permit process, sites multiple potential
conflicts of interest, and describes a pattern of City officials withholding information in a manner inconsistent with the
Public Records Act.
I didn’t know what to think about these allegations, but they are deeply concerning. I was reminded of a related article
published by Cal Coast News back on October 28, 2018 titled “Corruption allegations continue to dog local marijuana
industry.” This article alleged widespread corruption in the Grover Beach permitting process – going far beyond
accusations of impropriety and conflicts of interest to allege blatantly unethical and criminal behavior on the part of city
officials.
Among other things, the article alleged that Grover Beach Mayor John Shoals accepted a $100,000 bribe from Helios
Dayspring to guarantee his company a cannabis permit. It alleged “pay to play” schemes involving County Supervisor
Adam Hill and identified Cory Black and his consulting firm Public Policy Solutions as playing all sides of the process –
“contributing significantly” to Hill’s campaign while also working for Hill, Supervisor Gibson, Sheriff Parkinson, the SLO
County Planning Department, and representing multiple cannabis permit applicants in Grover.
The article went on to allege that the resultant SLO County cannabis ordinance, which some felt unfairly advantaged
larger growers represented by Cory Black, was crafted intentionally to advantage his clients, including Dayspring. This
was bolstered by a claim that planning department inspectors approved Dayspring’s grow sites without inspecting
them. It further claimed that Mayor Shoals and then Councilman Lee “veered from staff’s recommendations” and
manipulated the application rating point system to award permits to three applicants represented by or otherwise
connected with Cory Black.
The reason these articles concern me so greatly is that I was there for the Grover Beach permitting process and
witnessed it firsthand. There is significant merit in the article alleging corruption in the Grover Beach process and the
lawsuits may just be getting started. Some of the same players are vying for cannabis permits in San Luis Obispo, and
they are surrounded by the same operators looking to play all sides of the game.
Please don’t let the beautiful City of San Luis Obispo lose sight of its values in the pursuit of Fiscal Health. In the long
run, cities that rigorously vet applicants for cannabis permits and maintain transparent processes without conflicts of
interest will establish and grow more ethical businesses in their communities. These businesses will be more sustainably
profitable and consume less City resources related to enforcement, community complaints, lawsuits, and bad press.
Please take the time to go deeper than reading the applicant’s forms and performing a perfunctory background
check. Were they operating illegally before medical and adult use were legalized? Do they, their investors or advisors
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have a conflict of interest or the appearance of one? Have they been in the press for ethically questionable
practices? Have they been or are they being sued? If so, what for and what was the outcome? These are the kinds of
questions your community has the right to have answered. These people will be your neighbors for a long time and will
have a significant impact on the community.
I hope that in these proceedings, the City of San Luis Obispo will build upon its reputation as a City that wants to be seen
as a leader in municipal government by taking the time and effort to do it right, and do it for the right reasons rather
than to make a quick buck. Your constituents deserve no less.
Sincerely,
Wendy Cronin
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