ORDINANCE NO.
AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF RIVERSIDE, CALIFORNIA, TO EXTEND URGENCY ORDINANCE NO. 7733 ESTABLISHING A MORATORIUM ON THE ISSUANCE OF NEW TOBACCO RETAIL ESTABLISHMENT PERMITS WITHIN THE CITY.
WHEREAS, on September 16, 2025, the City Council for the City of Riverside adopted an urgency ordinance, Ordinance No. 7733, establishing a moratorium on the issuance of new Tobacco Retail Establishment Permits within the City of Riverside (“City”) pursuant to California Government Code section 65858; and WHEREAS, since the adoption of the moratorium, staff has continued to meet internally to explore and review the impacts of Tobacco Retailers within the City and consider comprehensive zoning and regulatory measures to address their potential effects on the community; and WHEREAS, staff supports the decision to extend the moratorium while City Council considers the various options and to allow staff to prepare any necessary code amendments for future consideration; and WHEREAS, additional time is needed in order to thoroughly develop appropriate regulations as dictated by the City Council; and WHEREAS, this Ordinance shall extend the existing moratorium for a period of no more than 10 months and 15 days with an expiration date of September 15, 2026; and WHEREAS, if necessary, this moratorium may be again extended as provided by law; and WHEREAS, this Ordinance extension of the moratorium is necessary based on the following findings:
The City is concerned with the observed illegal actions and repeated permit violations of Smoke Shops, as defined herein, operators within the City, involving the following:
Illegal sales of psylocibin mushroom products; and
Illegal sales of cannabis/cannabinoid products; and
Illegal sales of nitrous oxide for prohibited purposes; and Illegal sales of narcotics/narcotic paraphernalia.
The City is concerned with the public nuisance and negative secondary impacts caused by the permit violations of Tobacco Retailers within the City, involving the following:
City staff and law enforcement have observed that Tobacco Retailers are frequently associated with increased police calls for service related to theft, loitering, vandalism, and other criminal activity; and Smoke Shops operate in excess of allowed activities issued by their permits so as to constitute a public nuisance.
The City Council desires to investigate and study the land use and public safety impacts of Tobacco Retailers within the City of Riverside and to develop potential zoning, permitting, or other regulatory tools to address community concerns.
The City Council desires to investigate and study the implications of new state legislation under Health & Safety Code § 104559.5, including the effects of the legislation on Tobacco Retailer operations and regulation thereof.
The City Council desires to investigate and study the regulation of Tobacco Retailers to include the possible effect on and consistency with the City’s continued implementation of policies intended to protect the public health, safety and welfare, including Blue Zone policies.
Absent the adoption of this Ordinance, the issuance of new Tobacco Retailer Establishment Permits within the city, may pose a serious threat to the public health, safety, and welfare.
As a result, it is necessary to extend the moratorium on the issuance of new Tobacco Retail Establishment Permits within the City for an additional 10-months and 15-days, pending the completion of the City’s study.
In addition, it is necessary to prohibit, as a public nuisance, the issuance of new Tobacco Retail Establishment Permits for the duration of this Ordinance, or any extension thereof; and WHEREAS, the City has a compelling interest in protecting the public health, safety, and welfare of its residents and businesses, and preserving the peace and integrity of neighborhoods within the City; and WHEREAS, the City finds that the issuance of Tobacco Retail Establishment permits would pose a current and immediate threat to the public health, safety, and welfare, since such uses could potentially create conflicts with surrounding land uses, and could conflict with the City’s long-term planning goals to be implemented through the City’s General Plan, Specific Plans, and Zoning Code; and WHEREAS, there is an immediate need to prevent increased criminal incidents including but not limited to, theft, loitering, and vandalism, and dangerous illegal sales activities in the City, which have the potential to affect the character, aesthetic, safety and welfare of the community; and WHEREAS, in order to address concerns regarding the establishment of new Tobacco Retail establishments, it is necessary for the City to study the impact such uses have on the public health, safety and welfare, and potentially revise the City’s existing regulations or adopt new regulations; and WHEREAS, California Government Code section 65858 authorizes the City Council to, after notice and public hearing, extend the interim ordinance for 10 months and 15 days and subsequently extend the interim ordinance for one year by a four-fifths vote for adoption; and WHEREAS, the City Council held a duly noticed public hearing on October 21, 2025, and considered all oral and written evidence presented regarding the extension of the interim ordinance.
The City Council of the City of Riverside does ordain as follows:
Section 1. Incorporation of Recitals.
The above recitals are hereby declared to be true and correct and represent the findings of the City Council, made in the exercise of its independent judgment and that based on the above recitals, there is an immediate threat to the public health, safety and welfare. The adoption of this ordinance is necessary for the immediate protection of the public health, safety and welfare. Said findings are hereby incorporated by reference and made a part of this ordinance.
Section 2. Purpose.
The purpose of this ordinance is to is to continue a moratorium established by Ordinance No. 7733, adopted on September 16, 2025, on the issuance of new Tobacco Retail Establishment Permits within the City for the immediate preservation of the public health, safety and welfare.
Section 3. Authority and Findings.
Based on the findings set forth in the Recitals and incorporated herein in Section 1, the City has a compelling interest to protect the health, safety and welfare, specifically the City and the public’s interests, in the City’s aesthetic, economic, health, safety and community character, and as such the City Council hereby desires to extend the interim urgency ordinance, by not less than a four-fifths vote, under the authority granted to it by Article XI, Section 7 of the California Constitution and section 65858 of the California Government Code, which allows the City to extend an interim ordinance prohibiting land uses which may be in conflict with a contemplated general plan, specific plan, or zoning proposal that the City Council, planning commission or the planning department is considering or studying or intends to study within a reasonable time. The City Council hereby finds that the approval of new Tobacco Retail Establishment Permits would result in that threat to public health, safety, or welfare. These findings are based upon all of the facts recited in this ordinance, in the staff report accompanying this ordinance, all matters and information presented to this City Council at its meeting on October 21, 2025. The City Council hereby directs the Riverside Police Department and the Planning Division of the Community & Economic Development Department to work together to consider and study impacts of tobacco retail activities and to create new or revised regulations and/or ordinances that addresses such impacts.
Section 4. Moratorium Imposed.
The moratorium on the City’s issuance of new Tobacco Retail Establishment Permits is hereby extended until September 15, 2026. All terms, definitions and findings from Ordinance No. 7733 are hereby incorporated into this Ordinance and made a part of this Ordinance.
Section 5. Effective Date and Duration.
This ordinance shall become effective immediately upon adoption if adopted by at least four-fifths vote of the City Council and shall extend the interim ordinance for 10 months and 15 days until September 15, 2026, unless extended by the City Council in accordance with the provisions of California Government Code section 65858.
Section 6. Severability.
If any provision of this ordinance or the application thereof to any person or circumstance is held to be unconstitutional or otherwise invalid by a court of competent jurisdiction, such invalidity shall not affect other provisions or applications of this ordinance which can be implemented without the invalid provision or application and to this end the provisions of this ordinance are declared to be severable.
Section 7. California Environmental Quality Act.
The City hereby finds that this ordinance is not subject to review under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) pursuant to CEQA Guidelines sections 15060, subdivision (c)(2) (the activity will not result in a direct or reasonably foreseeable indirect physical change in the environment) and 15061, subdivision (b)(3) (there is no possibility the activity in question may have a significant effect on the environment). In addition to the foregoing general exemptions, the City Council further finds that this ordinance is categorically exempt from review under CEQA under the Class 8 Categorical Exemption (regulatory activity to assure the protection of the environment), CEQA Guidelines section 15308.
Section 8: The City Clerk shall certify to the adoption of this ordinance and cause publication once in a newspaper of general circulation in accordance with Section 414 of the Charter of the City of Riverside.
ADOPTED by the City Council this _________ day of _____________, 2025. ___________________________
PATRICIA LOCK DAWSON
Mayor of the City of Riverside
Attest:
_____________________________
DONESIA GAUSE
City Clerk of the City of Riverside
I, Donesia Gause, City Clerk of the City of Riverside, California, hereby certify that the foregoing ordinance was duly and regularly introduced and adopted at a meeting of the City Council on the _______ day of _______________, 2025, by the following vote, to wit:
Ayes:
Noes:
Absent:
Abstain:
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand and affixed the official seal of the City of Riverside, California, this ________ day of ______________, 2025. _________________________________
DONESIA GAUSE
City Clerk of the City of Riverside
312189 TAT 10/02/25
C:\Users\cpayne\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Windows\INetCache\Content.Outlook\TOGI6IT5\FINAL Urgency Moratorium Ordinance - Tobacco Retail Permits 09.04.25.docx 10 City Attorney’s Office3900 Main StreetRiverside, CA 92522(951) 826-5567City Attorney’s Office3900 Main StreetRiverside, CA 92522(951) 826-5567 City Attorney’s Office
3900 Main Street
Riverside, CA 92522
(951) 826-5567
City Attorney’s Office
3900 Main Street
Riverside, CA 92522
(951) 826-5567
City Attorney’s Office3900 Main StreetRiverside, CA 92522(951) 826-5567City Attorney’s Office3900 Main StreetRiverside, CA 92522(951) 826-5567 City Attorney’s Office
3900 Main Street
Riverside, CA 92522
(951) 826-5567
City Attorney’s Office
3900 Main Street
Riverside, CA 92522
(951) 826-5567
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