It’s been just over one year since the marijuana industry opened its first retail store in Washington state, generating more than $143 million, with sales now averaging more than $2 million a day in the state. Despite this success, many applicants are struggling to find state compliant properties because 60 percent of Washington’s land base is still under some sort of ban, moratorium or restriction.
The City of Everett added to that burden Wednesday night when they voted to keep out larger producer-processors and excluded one of the five retailers from a zone where the operation was already built out.
The city’s fear of legal marijuana operations is palpable and their newly implemented permanent regulations sends a clear message to the industry that lucrative cannabis money and jobs are not welcome in Everett. But unlike many other local municipalities who acted on the reefer-mad rhetoric of misinformed citizens, the city’s root of resistance stems from a blind allegiance to a regional economic development strategy that “financially incentivizes” businesses to relocate here (or to stay here) by diverting public tax dollars to subsidize the corporate coffers of a few coveted industries, which in turn, ties our financial dependence to businesses that are continually consolidating, downsizing, outsourcing and off-shoring production. Our city was presented with a rare opportunity to support profitable local businesses in an ever-expanding market and nurture local entrepreneurs to create living wage jobs. Encouraged by the administration, council members said no.
Two weeks ago, our state Legislature passed a revenue sharing plan, where more than 30 percent of cannabis excise taxes will be collected and deposited into the state’s general fund to be distributed to the cities. This desperately needed new revenue stream could have been used for schools, law enforcement, parks, libraries and other programs and initiatives that make Everett livable and desirable. Again, the city said no, preferring instead to reserve and protect vacant and unproductive industrial land for future aerospace exploitation. Have we learned nothing from Detroit?
Jamie Curtismith is a resident of Everett.
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