CITRUS HEIGHTS, CA (MPG) - At the January 23 Citrus Heights City Council meeting, staff recommended that the Council approve a resolution to amend City regulations regarding marijuana delivery.

When recreational marijuana was approved for adult use statewide in 2016, the City of Citrus Heights implemented a ban on both marijuana dispensaries and marijuana deliveries within city limits — a ban that was allowable under state law.

In January 2019, the Bureau of Cannabis Control amended their regulations regarding marijuana delivery, requiring all jurisdictions in California to allow delivery of marijuana even if marijuana businesses are banned. Under the new regulations, jurisdictions cannot prohibit a person within city limits from receiving a delivery that originates outside of the city.

Staff recommended that the City amend the municipal code regulations to allow for marijuana deliveries so the City will be in compliance with current state law.

Although Mayor Jeff Slowey acknowledged the necessity of complying with current California law, he said, “I’m going to oppose it; doesn’t make a difference, but I’m still going to do it.” While Mayor Slowey registered a protest vote, the rest of the Council voted to comply with state law, so the motion passed 4 to 1.

The Council also considered whether to approve an additional allocation of federal funds to the Sunrise Pointe housing project.

Sunrise Pointe will be located at 7424 Sunrise Blvd. at the site of the former Abel’s Christmas Trees lot. The housing project is being developed by Jamboree Housing Corporation, and it will offer supportive services for residents through HOPE Cooperative (formerly known as TLCS). The 47-unit project will offer permanent supportive housing, and 46 units will be restricted to low-income households with one unit reserved for an onsite manager.

In January 2019, the Council voted to allocate $1.3 million of the City’s federal HOME Investment Partnerships Program (HOME) funds to the Sunrise Pointe project.

HOME provides grants to states and local governments to create affordable housing for low-income individuals. In order to qualify for HOME funding, in 2000 the City of Citrus Heights joined a consortium with Rancho Cordova and Sacramento County. The consortium’s HOME funds are administered by the Sacramento Housing and Redevelopment Agency (SHRA).

In exchange for the original $1.3 million allocation of HOME funds to the Sunrise Pointe project, the City received replacement credits toward the Sayonara Drive Project. In 2010, numerous multi-family homes were demolished on Sayonara Dr. and Ming Way. Community Redevelopment Law requires that the demolished units be replaced with affordable housing units, so the City is obligated to replace 35 units.

From the 46 low-income units planned at Sunrise Pointe, the City will get 23 units of replacement credits. They only get credit for half the planned units because the project is outside of the redevelopment area of Sayonara Dr. The City will still have 12 units remaining toward its Sayonara replacement obligation.

After the City allocated the original $1.3 million in HOME funds to Sunrise Pointe, Jamboree applied for federal tax credits but wasn’t approved. To make it more competitive, Jamboree is requesting additional local matching funds.

SHRA administers the consortium’s HOME funds from a general account, so they offered to advance Citrus Heights an additional $2.28 million for Sunrise Pointe. The City receives approximately $250,000 in annual HOME funds, so this advance would require that the City use those annual funds to repay the consortium’s general account — a 10-year repayment commitment.

Staff recommended that the Council approve the additional allocation because the developer is very experienced in creating high-quality housing for low-income residents and are extremely responsive to community needs. The housing project would also help the City make progress toward their Regional Housing Needs Allocation (RHNA), an affordable-housing obligation that the City is required to meet. Moving forward with the project gets the City significantly closer to meeting its Sayonara replacement obligation as well — an obligation that must be met by September 2022.

Councilmember Bret Daniels expressed concern that promising 10 years of HOME funds to this particular project would limit the City’s ability to support other worthwhile projects during the next decade.

Mayor Slowey acknowledged, “It is a lot of money.” But he said, “It’s much needed,” and he stressed the significance of replacing the Sayonara units as soon as possible. “I actually think it’s a good program for the city. Quite frankly, $250,000 a year doesn’t allow us to do much on an annual basis. And yes, it commits it for 10 years, but in the long run I think it’s a great compromise. We need low-income housing; it will get folks off the street. It has onsite management, which is important to me. … I’m willing to support it.”

Mayor Slowey called for a vote and the motion passed 4 to 1, with Councilmember Daniels opposed.