Monterey County's eight cannabis retailers could soon let customers consume on-site after planning commissioners voted unanimously Wednesday, Sept. 30, to send a consumption-lounge ordinance to the Board of Supervisors.
The vote caps more than four years of industry requests for the change, Monterey County NOW first reported. Two of the eight retail shops sit near Carmel: Synchronicity Holistic and Big Sur Canna+Botanicals. The other six are in Moss Landing, Castroville, Prunedale, Salinas and Pajaro.
No date has been set for the supervisors to take up the measure.
"This is a small step and it's been a long time coming," Commissioner Martha Diehl said at the Sept. 30 meeting.
The ordinance would apply only to unincorporated county land. Under the framework Mike Novo, a management specialist with the Monterey County Planning Department, presented at a Feb. 25 workshop, retailers could get staff-level approval for indoor consumption. Outdoor consumption would require additional permits.
Commissioners added three conditions to their recommendation. Consumption-venue hours would track state law so the county's rules update automatically. Venues would include responsible-consumption language to address impaired-driving concerns. Staff would also assess whether the ordinance can distinguish between vaporization and combustion, which produce different odors and may follow different permitting paths.
The push comes as the county's cannabis tax revenue has dropped sharply. Collections fell from $20 million in 2021 to $3 million in 2024, according to figures presented at the February workshop. A Monterey County Civil Grand Jury report covering the 2023-2024 fiscal year said approving regulated lounges could help reverse that decline.
Diehl framed the ordinance as a way to manage activity already happening in public spaces. She said she hoped the county would eventually extend consumption privileges to hospitality venues serving visitors and guests.
At the February workshop, Big Sur Canna+Botanicals co-founder Aram Stoney said the change would give consumers a legal indoor option. He noted that people already consume cannabis in parking lots and on benches near retail shops, and said lounges could also open a new revenue stream for struggling operators.
San Francisco, West Hollywood, National City and Santa Cruz County already permit cannabis consumption lounges. Monterey County studied those programs while drafting its ordinance.
The Board of Supervisors Cannabis Committee is chaired by Supervisor Chris Lopez, with Supervisor Luis Alejo as vice-chair. Residents can watch for the ordinance on a future supervisors agenda at the county's Legistar portal.
