Davis City Council Meeting: March 5, 2024 – I-80 Letter, Cannabis Cap, Housing Report
Davis City Council Meeting: March 5, 2024 – I-80 Letter, Cannabis Cap, Housing Report
The Davis City Council met on Tuesday, March 5, 2024, at 6:30 PM in Community Chambers. Key topics included a proposed letter to state officials regarding I-80 widening, an update on the city's cannabis regulatory framework, and the 2023 Housing Element Annual Progress Report. After extensive public comment and council debate, the council declined to send the I-80 letter but directed the legislative subcommittee to submit comments on the Caltrans Investment Framework. On cannabis, the council directed staff to align local rules with state licensing, review regulatory fees and tax structure, and complete a Cannabis Benefit Fund Impact Report, while deferring a decision on increasing the retail cap pending further market analysis. The housing report was received with appreciation.
Consent Calendar
- Approved third extension for Final Map No. 5199 (Bretton Woods Phase 1, Lot 3) and authorized the City Manager to execute the Subdivision Agreement with DeNova Homes, Inc.
- Appointed Councilmembers Donna Neville and Will Arnold to an Ad Hoc Subcommittee on the Village Farms Davis project for development agreement and tax share negotiations.
- Received informational minutes from the Historical Resources Management Commission meeting of September 18, 2023.
Public Comments & Testimony
Item 4 – I-80 Letter:
- Numerous public comments were received, both in person and via voicemail. Speakers expressed a range of views:
- Support for the letter (and for stronger opposition to widening) came from: Alan Hirsch (Davis Lorax), Dylan (individual), Greg Crawford (individual), Jan Trost (Congregation Beth Hava’ne Social Justice Committee), Todd Edelman (individual), and many voicemail callers (e.g., Gaina Landang, Angie Fondo as chair of Yolo County Climate Action Commission, Ellen Callark, Steve Murphy, Dr. Roy Kaplan, Judy Ennis, Ferris Fendronski, Dora Lee Gwendur Catona, John Catona, Victoria Whitworth, Gabriel Ehrlich, Barbara Cletter, David Schoenbrunn, Mark Hushing, Roberta Milstein, Alan Miller, Bill Miller, Jim Zanetto). They argued that widening would not fix congestion, would increase greenhouse gas emissions (including a 15% increase to Davis’s carbon footprint), undermine climate goals, and encouraged the council to focus on transit alternatives. Some requested the letter be sent to Yolo TD.
- Opposition to the letter and support for the widening (or for a more moderate approach) came from: Ken Wagstaff (former councilmember, argued for managing congestion), Autumn Bernstein (executive director of Yolo Transportation District, presented survey data showing majority of 750 Davis respondents prefer a carpool lane or bus-only lane, not a tolled express lane), Don Saylor (former SACOG board member, urged council not to pass the letter, called for “all of the above” approach), Kathleen Hanley (SACOG principal planner, highlighted freight needs and regional toll network), and voicemail callers Robert Davidson, Gene Dinas, Julie Curry (supported HOV lane).
- Several commenters suggested the letter should explicitly call for stopping the project and should be sent to Yolo TD.
Item 5 – Cannabis Business Update:
- Ashley Cammar (CEO, Davis Cannabis Collective) urged the council not to lift or remove the cap on retail storefronts, stating the industry is struggling due to high taxes, illicit markets, and large corporations engaging in predatory pricing.
- Rob (co-owner, F Street Dispensary) argued that more dispensaries would not increase total revenue due to a fixed and shrinking market, citing openings in Woodland, Winters, and Vacaville.
- Mary Kay Hole (owner, Good People Farms – delivery only) requested the council consider allowing her business to open a retail storefront, noting that delivery sales mostly come from outside Davis and a storefront would increase city revenue.
Item 6 – Housing Element Report: No public comments.
Item 7 – Long Range Calendar: No public comments.
Discussion Items
Item 4 – Consideration of Letter to State Regarding Transportation – I-80:
- City Manager Mike Webb provided background: the council had previously (Jan 9, 2024) submitted CEQA comments on Caltrans’s draft EIR for the I-80 project. The current item was a letter drafted by the Legislative Subcommittee (Councilmembers Arnold and Neville) to Governor Newsom and state agencies, focusing on broader policy conflicts between the project and state climate/transportation goals (e.g., CAPTI).
- Councilmember Neville, a co-author, explained she initially supported the letter but now believed it did not serve a clear purpose, lacked an actionable request, and did not reflect a consensus view of the council or community. She recommended not sending it and instead suggested the council submit comments on the Caltrans Investment Framework (due April 15) which seeks alignment with CAPTI.
- Councilmember Arnold stated he was comfortable with the letter, acknowledging that all sides had valid points (induced demand, temporary congestion relief, transit funding), but he would not support sending it on a bare majority vote.
- Councilmember Partida expressed similar concerns about lack of community consensus and noted that many residents she spoke with support widening to reduce cut-through traffic. She preferred to focus on transit investment rather than the letter.
- Vice Mayor Vaitla strongly supported the letter, citing state policy (CAPTI) and research on induced demand. He argued that the status quo is not an option and that the council should take a clear position.
- Mayor Chapman opposed sending the letter, stating the council does not have the power to stop the project, and the letter misrepresents a community consensus. He argued for a regional perspective and noted that the I-80 project includes a managed lane that could fund transit.
- The council ultimately defeated the motion to send the letter (no formal vote taken; lack of consensus led to action not proceeding). Instead, they voted 5-0 on a motion by Vice Mayor Vaitla, seconded by Councilmember Arnold, to direct the Legislative Subcommittee (Neville and Arnold) to submit comments to the Caltrans Investment Framework by the April 15 deadline, representing the council’s views.
Item 5 – Cannabis Business Update:
- Assistant City Manager Kelly Stachowicz presented an overview of the city’s cannabis regulatory framework, including land use permits, cannabis business permits (operational), and business license tax. Current counts: 4 active storefront dispensaries, 1 non-operational storefront (946 Olive – CUP still valid), and 3 other businesses (delivery, manufacturing, etc.). Revenues have fluctuated; FY2024 to date is $1.2 million, with FY2025 estimated at $2.4 million.
- Staff asked for council feedback on: (2) whether to increase or remove the cap on retail storefronts (currently at 5); (3) align local licensing with state rules; (4) update regulatory fees; (5) complete a Cannabis Benefit Fund Impact Report.
- Councilmembers discussed the state of the industry (market saturation, corporate consolidation, black market, high local taxes). Councilmember Arnold noted that the original five operators included Good People Farms, which was not selected. He supported increasing the cap only for delivery-only businesses to open a storefront, but not a free-for-all. He also expressed interest in commercial cultivation and addressing the black market.
- Councilmember Partida asked about education requirements in dispensaries (none currently) and inquired about allowing delivery-only businesses to open storefronts.
- Vice Mayor Vaitla expressed interest in getting one more year of revenue data before deciding on increasing the cap.
- Mayor Chapman preferred not to remove the cap entirely, nor to add more without better understanding market impacts. He wanted staff to come back with more data, including a comparison of tax and fee structures with neighboring jurisdictions.
- The council voted 5-0 to approve recommendations 3, 4, and 5 (align licensing, update fees and tax structure, complete benefit fund report). On recommendation 2 (cap), no action was taken; the council requested additional data before making a decision. Staff will bring back information on market conditions, regional competition, and potential impacts before revisiting the cap.
Item 6 – Housing Element Annual Progress Report and Residential Development Status Report for 2023:
- Community Development Director Sherri Metzger presented: 384 dwelling units finalized in 2023 (only 1 single-family; 2 apartment projects). The city has 8 years to meet its RHNA allocation of 2,075 units. Table of pending projects shows ~1,000 units in entitlement process, ~878 units in construction/permit process, and ~3,000 units in the county with possible annexation. 60 ADU permits issued over 3 years. City Manager Webb noted the UC Davis campus also increased housing, leading to a higher rental vacancy rate (near 3%, up from under 1%).
- Councilmembers thanked staff and requested a simpler dashboard tracking progress against RHNA categories. They also praised the pre-approved ADU plans.
- The report was received.
Item 7 – A. AB 1234 Reporting: No meetings reported. B. City Council Long Range Calendar: No changes. Next meeting March 19, 2024. Councilmember Neville requested an update on the homelessness crisis, including use of $1.17M in federal rescue funds. City Manager noted a city-county 2x2 meeting on March 20. Councilmember Partida raised the idea of placing an at-large mayoral election on the November ballot; City Attorney Inder Khalsa noted complexities with district elections and suggested further discussion.
Key Outcomes
- Item 4: The council did not send the proposed I-80 letter. Approved (5-0) a motion directing the Legislative Subcommittee (Neville, Arnold) to submit comments on the Caltrans Investment Framework by April 15, 2024, representing the council’s views.
- Item 5: The council voted 5-0 to direct staff to: 1) align local licensing requirements with state rules; 2) review and propose updates to regulatory fees and tax structure (including a regional comparison); 3) complete the Cannabis Benefit Fund Impact Report. No decision on increasing the retail cap; staff will gather additional market data and return with recommendations.
- Item 6: The Housing Element Annual Progress Report and Residential Development Status Report were received. Staff will develop a simplified dashboard tracking RHNA category progress.
- Item 7: No formal actions. The long-range calendar was noted. The homelessness update and at-large mayor question will be addressed in future meetings.
Meeting Transcript
Good evening, everyone, and welcome to the March 5th meeting of the Davis City Council. I will call the meeting to order and reflect that it is let the record reflect it is 6 38 p.m. And all my colleagues are here. Uh and with that, I will entertain a motion to approve the agenda. Second. We have a motion by Councilmember Partita and a second by Councilmember Neville. All in favor, please say aye. Aye. Aye. Opposed, abstained. We have an agenda. We'll now move on to item number one A, City Manager Brief Announcements. Mike. Yeah, thank you very much, Mayor, City Council. Good evening. Have a handful of announcements for you tonight. First is our recreation registration opens tomorrow, March 6th, for uh several of our very popular programs. That's Camp PUDA, Trekkers, and Horse Camp. The registration for those programs for the programs after that will start on March 20th. So we have about a two-week uh gap between these registration March 20th is all other camps and programs uh and swim lessons. Uh the um uh community members can sign up for Camp PUDA trekkers and horse camp uh on uh starting at March 6th at 7 a.m. The registration is available online or in person only uh and phone registration then would uh begin uh starting in April on April 17th. So there's some phasing uh to our registration process here. Um so the Camp Huda horse camp and trekkers in particular are very high demand, uh very popular uh camps. Uh so registration is limited to the one week um and one week per program per uh per eligible child. So it's you know, pick pick the favorite, not all three and not for multiple weeks. Um and so under uh rec guides on the city webpage. Uh you can see the image of that guide here uh is more details and information on that, and certainly our parks and community services department uh are the folks to contact with any questions uh and obviously just uh undertake that registration process. So uh starting at 7 a.m. uh tomorrow for Camp Puta Trekkers and Horse Camp. Uh the chamber uh and Chamber of Commerce uh is gonna be uh doing their annual state of the city where they've invited uh Mayor Chapman and myself to come and do uh an overview of sort of what's happening in the city, what are the stuff what's the status of things? Uh and uh so they're doing that once again. This year they're going they're back to an in-person format where they did uh you know a Zoom format for the last several years, uh particularly during COVID. Uh so that's gonna be at SuidWorks uh restaurant starting at 11 a.m. to about 12.30. Um that event's gonna be moderated by uh one of the board members uh and ambassador Chad Carlock, uh, who's also the vice chair for uh the board of directors. And uh we're looking forward to discussing topics such as uh city finances, infrastructure, development activity, uh, and more uh that will be uh done with that overview. Uh more information can be found on the on the city and the chamber's social media channels as well. Um and you can see the their flyer here that they put out for that. Um and I will note that for those who uh you know are not able to get in or don't uh have uh uh the ability to attend the event in person, uh as we've done for uh many years in the past. We will be posting uh the presentation slides to our city webpage where we have all the past years actually, all in chronological. Uh we'll be so this too will be posted uh immediately following uh the event tomorrow. So looking forward to that. Uh next item is the Amtrak Davis Improvement Project. So this is uh uh Amtrak and the city of Davis will be hosting two outreach meetings with the community. Uh that's also happening tomorrow, busy day tomorrow on March 6th to share pending improvements and upgrades to the Amtrak station to make it more ADA accessible. This is primarily a Capitol Corridor and uh federal railroad uh uh uh led project um so that is funded uh by them. Uh and it's upgrades to the station that could include uh new center platform that would be accessed either by a under or over crossing uh for safer access. Um we're currently that access is at grade. Um the new platform lighting and signage, track improvements to support uh service efficiencies, uh, and a new connection uh that uh the city is interested in going taking things from the dam track station to all of drive and making a bike and pedestrian connection there over to uh land that was secured as part of the uh writer apartment uh complex at Lincoln 40 on all of Drive that was secured through our development agreement with that project as well as some funding uh with that development agreement to help uh pay for that extension of the connection uh over to all of drive.
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