Voters favor status quo, reject retail dope sales
by Kevin Cody Hermosa Beach’s crowded Nov. 8 General Election ballot portended significant change to the landscape of Hermosa politics. The ballot listed eight candidates for three open council seats, and also measures to legalize cannabis stores, tax cannabis sales, increase the local sales tax by .075 percent, and rescind the city’s outdated civil service procedures. But rather than vote for change, residents reelected Raymond Jackson, the one council incumbent seeking reelection, and voted down cannabis stores, despite a $100,000 campaign by the cannabis industry. Voters also rejected the council-backed tax increase, raising the familiar specter of a budget crisis. Voters did approve a tax of up to 10 percent on cannabis sales. But the only cannabis sales allowed in Hermosa are by delivery. In October, the council lifted the ban on cannabis deliveries in hopes of weakening voter support for cannabis stores. But to date, no cannabis delivery services have applied for business permits. Identifying unlicensed cannabis delivery services is difficult because state law prohibits identifying signage on their delivery vehicles. The unopposed civil service measure was also approved…
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