Cannabis lounge ordinance to move forward to Board of Supervisors.

Monterey County planning commissioners unanimously approved a recommendation to advance a cannabis consumption venue ordinance to the Board of Supervisors. 

The ordinance could allow cannabis consumption on-site at retail locations in unincorporated Monterey County, a request the cannabis industry has made for more than four years to help provide a boost to a struggling industry. No date has yet been set for when the ordinance will go before the supervisors.

“This is a small step and it's been a long time coming,” Commissioner Martha Diehl said at the Sept. 30 meeting.

Recommendations include tying consumption-venue hours to state law so that the county’s language can easily change to match if and when state requirements change. It also includes a recommendation to add responsible-consumption language at venues in response to questions and concerns about impaired driving, as well as having staff assess whether the ordinance can distinguish between vaporization from smoking versus combustion. The classification matters as the two byproducts may produce different odors, and follow different permitting processes.

Unincorporated Monterey County currently has eight operating retail locations: Smoke Stacks in Moss Landing; One Plant in Castroville; White Fire in Prunedale; One Plant and Cali Love in Salinas (North County); Santa Cruz Naturals in Pajaro; and Synchronicity Holistic and Big Sur Canna Botanicals in Carmel.

The cannabis industry first brought the issue to the County around four years ago, eventually prompting the Board of Supervisors to direct staff to prepare recommendations in fall 2025. The Planning Commission hosted a workshop in February this year to discuss some of the research and concerns.

Several other California cities, including San Francisco, West Hollywood and National City, as well as Santa Cruz County, have led the way in allowing cannabis consumption lounges, serving as models that Monterey County analyzed during its planning process.

“I really urge people to remember that we're not creating a new thing. We're trying to provide a framework for something that's currently occurring to make it possible to better manage this,” Diehl said. “I certainly hope that we'd be open to some extension of this in the future that might allow other hospitality venues to provide this opportunity, particularly for visitors and guests, so we can get it out of our public spaces.”