Marijuana, Fees on Next Council Agenda
You may have missed the Notices Of Public Hearing to be held in the City Council Chambers on Tuesday, April 26th that were published on April 14th by the Antioch City Clerk.
The first one is in regard to the adoption of a urgency ordinance establishing a temporary moratorium on the establishment and operation of medical marijuana collectives, cooperative and dispensaries (whether at a fixed site or mobile) to become effective immediately.
Hurray! Wonder if there’s any nexus between the proposed ordinance and a civil suit against the former Antioch Police Chief and numerous Antioch officers in regard to a raiding of two commercial properties on Sunset Drive, one rented to a clothier and the other housing “Grow It Yourself Gardens”?
The second one is , however, merely a way to increase revenues. It calls for consideration of proposed fees (not delineated) to be charged by various City Departments for building, electrical, plumbing, mechanical, other construction, community development, land use, land cartelization and subdivision, engineering review and inspection, signs, regulatory permits, water usage, public safety, recreation activities and misc. services.
This is one way of getting around the voters who demonstrated that enough’s enough when they voted down an increase in the already outrageous sales taxes we pay in order to provide more revenue for the Police Department. Incidentally, APD isn’t helping the city’s financial position by merely agreeing to pay 3% toward CalPERS to December 31, 2011. (They’re in contract until 2013). APD Sworn Management Personnel, on the other hand, agreed in March to pay full 9% share over a 5-year phase in.
One more item of note: Council voted to convey ADA properties over to the City of Antioch. Ironically, Pittsburg recently had the rating of three sets of city redevelopment bonds lowered by the bond agency who stated that the redevelopment agency had barely enough property tax revenue to cover obligations due to three years of loss in property values. Has the City of Antioch now put itself in a vulnerable position?
