From: Taylor Megdal
To: councilmtgitems
Cc: Lauren Niehaus; Brian Manning
Subject: Recreational Canabis Ownership Letter of Support Date: Monday, October 23, 2023 10:30:06 AM
Attachments: City of Santa Monica_Support for Adult-Use Sales_10.19.23 TM Signed.pdf
EXTERNAL
I respectfully submit the attached in favor of allowing the two medical licenses currently in Santa Monica to be allowed to be adult use.
Let me know if you have any questions...
Thank you
Taylor
Taylor Megdal, Esq.
President
The Megdal Companies
252 S. Beverly Drive, Suite #C
Beverly Hills, CA 90212
Office: (310) 277-0416
Fax: (310) 277-0519
Cell: (310) 601-6600
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ITEM 5.K.
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October 23, 2023
RE: Support for adult-use sales in the city of Santa Monica Santa Monica City Council
1685 Main St.
Santa Monica, CA 90401
Dear Members of the Santa Monica City Council,
We are writing to express our strong support for the sale of adult-use cannabis within the city of Santa Monica. As an established cannabis operator in the state, we have witnessed the positive effects of responsible cannabis regulation, and believe Santa Monica has the opportunity to benefit greatly from such a policy change.
Adult use marijuana legalization has been implemented successfully, and responsibly, in various states across the nation. In November 2016, California citizens supported adult-use legalization, via Prop 64. Santa Monica is poised to adopt the same.
The city has already secured two strong operators and has rules in place that will ensure that the cannabis businesses in the city operate to the benefit of the community.
We believe that Santa Monica, with its vibrant and diverse community, is well-positioned to launch into adult-use sales while continuing to prioritize public safety and community wellbeing. By allowing adult-use sales, the city can benefit from an economic boost and ensure that consumers have access to safe and regulated products.
Transparency and open dialogue are crucial to shaping policies that reflect the needs and values of the residents, while ensuring a strong business environment. We appreciate the opportunity to expand upon our originally planned business and provide both medical and adult use access to Santa Monica citizens.
As the city has already promulgated rules for medical sales, it is imperative that those standards remain in place. Transitioning those rules to be inclusive of adult use sales, will prime the approved operators for success. We strongly encourage the Council to follow the existing state regulations governing the sale of adult use cannabis, and after there has been time for operators to implement those sales, should a change need to be made, we are committed to bringing additional best-practice suggestions to planning and Council for consideration.
Our company is in the midst of construction and poised to open in the coming months. While this process has been a long time coming, we are looking forward to serving the Santa Monica community in the coming months. We will have recently paid for our building permits and are finalizing re-designs of our floor plan layout. As soon as we have approval to proceed, we plan ITEM 5.K.
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to move quickly to become operational. Our team on the ground in the city will be focusing all efforts on opening this store before the end Q1, 2024.
To conclude, we ask the Santa Monica City Council to consider the potential benefits of legalizing and regulating adult-use cannabis sales within the city, with the current rules in place.
This is an opportunity to boost the local economy, promote consumer safety, and reduce the influence and use of the illicit market.
Thank you for your time and consideration. We look forward to our continued partnership with the city of Santa Monica.
Sincerely,
Taylor Megdal
Co-Owner, Harvest License/Location
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