by Garth Meyer
Needing a 4/5 vote to commission a poll on whether residents want cannabis stores in Redondo Beach, the city council got there Tuesday night, after extended negotiation and a dissenting vote from Paige Kaluderovic, saying the city is not ready, it has something else to take care of first.
“Smoke shops,” she said. “Illegal products being sold at our current stores. The survey should be later, after we have provided this enforcement and crackdown in our city.”
Councilman Scott Behrendt was skeptical of the proposed survey process, but after a series of questions to councilmembers and a representative of FM3 polling, he made a motion for a 500-person study of registered voters, phone and online, with “modified moderate” participation by the council on what the questions, and information presented, will be.
“Kind of a trust, but verify,” Behrendt said.
The motion passed, for an estimated cost of $39,000.
“(The poll results) will be just one data point to consider,” Behrendt said.
Mayor Jim Light weighed in before the vote, first with caution about the city’s current $3.5 million deficit.
“One of the worst things we can do to the public is poll them and ignore it,” he said. “I think we need to be prepared to live with what we hear.”
Richard Bernard, a partner at FM3 (Fairbank, Maslin, Maulin, Metz & Associates), which the city sought out after the firm’s local survey work before Measure FP., appeared in front of the council. He described the proposed cannabis poll as a straight-up question at the start – do you want retail cannabis stores in Redondo Beach or not? – followed by a statement from supporters, then from detractors, then asking the first question again. Half of the 500 people polled would hear the supporters’ statement first, and half would hear the detractors’ first.
FM3 (Los Angeles) would also include a brief education about what is proposed for Redondo Beach – up to two cannabis storefronts, with wide buffer zones around schools and parks, and a city sales tax of 4.5%.
The Redondo Beach city council split Tuesday on whether the poll should include only registered voters. Councilman Chadwick Castle said it should be for those unregistered too, as did Councilman Brad Waller.
Councilman Behrendt disagreed.
“You almost have to opt out not to be registered to vote. If someone’s not willing to engage in our process, you shouldn’t be driving policy with this council, with this poll,” he said.
Bernard, a 23-year polling veteran with a PhD in sociology from UCLA, noted that nine in 10 adults in Redondo Beach are registered to vote.
Kaluderovic made a motion to hold off on the poll until perhaps after next year’s strategic planning, noting the council’s two-big-things focus in its current plan – Measure FP and economic development – of which Behrendt spoke in agreement.
Measure FP passed last November, to fund a new Redondo Beach Police station and two new fire stations.
Councilman Castle reported to his colleagues that he did an informal poll in District Two, with a four percent response which “came out in a tie.” One third said yes, one third no, and one third was unsure. Castle noted that a cannabis store was unlikely to appear in his district because of the number of schools and subsequent buffer zones.
Councilman Zein Obagi, Jr., made the first motion Tuesday night, calling for 500 interviews, and minimal to no participation by the council in framing the questions; which drew a second from Waller.
Councilmember Kaluderovic followed with her substitute motion, first saying that she thought FM3 is the right group for the job, but it wasn’t the right time to hire them.
“I don’t think we’re there yet,” she said, noting the council’s current strategic plan and issues with the cannabis industry at large, as well as local smoke shops.
“Let’s wait until we can prove to residents we can do a proper job of enforcement,” she said. “That we can implement this safely, should we decide to do that.”
She proposed to pause until at least mid-next year “when we have a better idea of, at least, our economic status, as well as, ‘what have we made, as far as progress in enforcement with the existing illegal sales in our city?”
Obagi, Jr., asked her to clarify. Cannabis, tobacco?
“Both,” Kaluderovic said, alleging each is being sold illegally in Redondo Beach smoke shops.
Waller said he would like to go ahead with the survey now, but could wait. Castle made a point that its cost could go up.
“I don’t see a material difference in (then vs. now). We’ll be ahead of budget at mid-year,” he said.
Whether sooner, or later, poll questions would not be made public before it is taken.
“If we daylight the full questionnaires, we’re going to politicize the outcome,” said City Manager Mike Witzansky. “The goal is to get as accurate of data as possible. That’s the whole point of doing this.”
Behrendt queried Kaluderovic and she reiterated her motion.
“We need to do our job first before even asking the question. Until the residents see the enforcement. They see the change in the community,” she said. “We haven’t seen that yet. Nothing’s changed.”
No second followed the motion. Obagi, Jr. seconded Behrendt’s and city staff will now write a budget resolution for a $39,000 expenditure.
No estimation was given for when the poll might take place and when results would be available. The margin of error, Bernard said, would be 4.4%. ER
