Lawrence J. Conlan
831 S T A T E S TREET , S A N T A B A R B A R A, C A L I F O R N I A 9 3 1 0 1- 3 2 2 7 L C O N L A N@ C A P P E L L O N O E L. COM T E L ( 8 0 5 ) 564 - 2 4 4 4 F AX ( 8 0 5 ) 9 6 5- 5 9 5 0 WWW . C A P P E L L O N O E L. COM March 13, 2025
Via Email
David G. Lim, Esq.
Richards Watson Gershon
One Sansome Street, Suite 2850
San Francisco, California 94104
Email: [email protected]
Re: Support for Continuance of March 18, 2025 Item for Resolution No. 2025-37 Rescinding Cannabis Permit for Authentic Fairfield LLC
Dear Mr. Lim
We are legal counsel for Embarc, the operator of a retail cannabis dispensary in Fairfield, California. We write to urge the City to issue a minimum two-week continuance of the planned March 18, 2025 agenda item for Resolution No. 2025-37 (the “Proposed Resolution”) relating to the City’s consideration for revocation of the cannabis retail permit previously granted to Authentic Fairfield LLC (“Authentic”) for failure to comply with Fairfield Municipal Code Chapter 10E sections regarding transfer or change of ownership.
As the City is aware and has been extensively briefed, Fairfield’s Municipal Code prohibits the transfer of ownership of cannabis business permits, and any attempt to transfer a commercial cannabis business permit without complying with Chapter 10E “shall be deemed void and is grounds for permit revocation.” The question that the City seeks to answer in deciding on the Proposed Resolution is whether Authentic did in fact engage in a transfer of ownership in violation of the Municipal Code.
On March 4, 2025, the undersigned made a request to the Department of Cannabis Control (DCC) under California’s Public Records Act (PRA) seeking any and all application records relating to Authentic’s ownership disclosures. These documents showing records of ownership submitted by Authentic to DCC will definitively prove, one way or another, whether Authentic violated the Municipal Code. In fact, we assume the City already has independently requested the same information from both DCC and Authentic.
We presently expect these requested documents will be received by March 29, 2025.
Since these records are mere weeks away from being received and turned over to the City, it would be premature for the City to make a decision at the March 18, 2025 meeting when it can simply wait a few more weeks and make a better-informed decision once in possession of definitive official records that will address the issue at hand.
March 13, 2025
Should the City make a decision either approving or rejecting the Proposed Resolution without the benefit of the DCC records, and then new facts come to light showing that the City made an erroneous decision contradicted by these official records, it would be embarrassing and would expose the City to legal jeopardy for failing to enforce its ordinance in a fair and evenhanded manner, and for failing to obtain available and presumably definitive evidence on its own.
There will be very little prejudice to Authentic or the City or any other party in waiting a few more weeks, since, as Authentic’s counsel stated at the previous hearing, they would like to have an answer on the Proposed Resolution in April.
We have already made our position clear, that we believe Authentic has violated the Municipal Code for failing to disclose an ownership transfer in the license. Again, we expect that we or the City will be in possession of official documents Authentic submitted to DCC by March 29, 2025 definitively proving whether or not Authentic violated the Municipal Code.
Accordingly, we ask that the City continue the March 18, 2025 meeting until we have received these documents from DCC and turned them over to the City.
Respectfully,
Lawrence J. Conlan