The medical marijuana dispensary that indirectly prompted the two recent changes to the section of the City code dealing with the wording of marijuana establishments and their spacing requirements passed Sapulpa’s Planning Commission 6-1 at its special meeting on Tuesday, February 2.
Applicant Ben Neal intends to give the old Stockard’s gas station, on the southwest corner of Mission and Taft, a significant facelift and to open his dispensary, “The Grass Station,” as soon as possible. The renderings of the building he provided to the City show that the updates will make the property look “clean, modern, and well-lit,” according to his application.
Urban Development Director Nikki Howard told the board that the owner of the building, Dave Mortazavi, bought it in 2013 and that it has remained vacant since. A retail business in this location is in line with the Comprehensive Plan and since the City Council changed dispensary spacing requirements, it is also now in compliance with City code. For these reasons, she recommended approval of the application, with the same conditions usually asked of dispensaries, such as safety and security measures.
Two members of the public spoke against the Council’s decision to lessen spacing requirements for dispensaries outside of the central business district from 1,000 feet to 300 feet.
One gentleman questioned if there is “a data analysis of the economic impact of dispensaries” on the City. He said he would like to see a study of “how much sales tax the City makes from dispensaries per month.”
Incidentally, Councilor Hugo Naifeh asked City Manager Joan Riley and Finance Director Pam Vann for similar information at the City Council meeting on January 19, and they are currently working on separating those numbers from other sales tax revenue statistics on the reports they regularly review. Sapulpa Times will analyze and share that data when it is available. What is already known is that the sales tax collected from medical marijuana dispensaries is one of the primary reasons the City has fared so well, and so much better than other nearby municipalities (as evidenced by year-to-date sales tax revenue being $1M over the amount budgeted last year), during the pandemic.
Despite the commenters’ assertions that the ordinance would allow “too many” dispensaries in the City and “take business away from existing” ones by increasing competition, as Chairman Andrew Probst explained, the Planning Commission primarily handles land use issues and not overall economic strategies for the City.
Additionally, Planning Commissioners Carla Stinnett and Lou Martin individually commented that the argument is irrelevant since the ordinance passed City Council Monday on January 19th and is now officially part of the City code.
Ultimately the SPC passed the dispensary’s Special Use Permit and it will be heard next at the regular City Council meeting for final approval on February 15.
Upscale townhome development passes
Chris Key, the developer of the new upscale townhome development northwest of West 81st Street and 33rd West Avenue, concurrently submitted an annexation request, a rezoning application, and a request for an amendment of the original Planned Unit Development approved on June 1, 2020. Key purchased an additional 10 acres (Phase II) just south of the original project (Phase I). He requested that the land be annexed into city limits, rezoned from agriculture to residential townhome and that a PUD be implemented for the privately-maintained street that will run through the gated community.
Mark Capron with Wallace Engineering explained that Phase II is “almost a mirror image of what we did in Phase I.” Howard reported that the plan is “Very nice and is in compliance with city code and the comprehensive plan, therefore, staff recommends approval.”
Key spoke to the commission and described the project, and said that each townhome will be individually owned. He said there is a demographic of both older and younger people who desire upscale living with less maintenance than a traditional home. “They want amenities and services, but not a big yard to maintain,” he said.
He also reported that he is donating the significant green space between 33rd West Avenue and the development to the Oklahoma Conservation Society to prevent it from ever being developed and ruining its wildlife habitat and beauty.
This passed 6-1 and will be heard at the regular City Council meeting on February 15.
Well-known local business Mission Street, LLC was approved for a Special Use Permit to expand the area where construction of its new mini storage facility is underway and to rezone from an agricultural to a commercial general district. This is located just west of Walmart, south of where Highway 117 curves north around the Rock Creek Golf Course. The new piece of land included in the project is on the northwest corner of the site.
Alan Soleyman applied for a Special Use Permit to operate a medical marijuana dispensary at 7919 State Highway 66. This location was already a dispensary under different ownership and was called Mary Jane 918. The new business is to be named Route 66 Wonderland and will be up for final approval at City Council on the 15th.
Featured Image: This screenshot from Google Maps shows the new dispensary at the corner of Mission and Taft, set to be called the “Grass Station”.
