The Huntington Beach City Council will consider allowing certain cannabis activities within the city, including retail sales, at its upcoming meeting.

The council’s agenda for its Tuesday, Nov. 15, meeting includes an item that would start the process for a draft zoning text amendment to allow cannabis activities in Huntington Beach.

The council is working off an ad hoc committee’s recommendations, which include allowing retailers as long as there is a 1,000-foot buffer from all K-12 schools and a 600-foot buffer from licensed commercial daycares, parks and youth centers. The downtown and Sunset Beach areas would be excluded, according to a presentation prepared for Tuesday’s meeting.

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The recommendations include allowing retailers in multi-storefront businesses and permitting delivery-only retail in industrial zones.

Non-retailers would only be allowed in industrial zones with similar buffer requirements, according to the recommendations.

Ahead of Tuesday’s meeting, Ocean View School District leaders have requested the proposed cannabis sites maps to be refigured, noting its Westmont Elementary School on Heil Avenue is within that 1,000-foot buffer zone.

Although there are still ballots left to be counted, most Huntington Beach voters appear to approve of a ballot measure that would allow the city to impose a tax on cannabis businesses – if they are ever allowed to operate within Huntington Beach.

If approved, Measure O would allow Huntington Beach to impose a tax of up to 6% of gross receipts for retailers and up to 1% of gross receipts for other cannabis businesses, such as testing or distribution. It is expected the taxes would bring in $300,000 to $600,000 each year to fund general municipal services.

Since California voters legalized marijuana use for adults 21 and over, only a few Orange County cities have approved dispensaries. Santa Ana became the first in 2017. Costa Mesa voters chose to legalize cannabis sales in 2020.

Huntington Beach’s City Council meeting will start at 6 p.m. in its chambers at 2000 Main St.