Dispensaries are coming to Monterey after council chooses the city’s first cannabis storefronts.

Dispensaries will soon open their doors in Monterey, following the city council’s May 21 decision to approve the permits for four cannabis retail stores.

The council voted 4-0 in favor of the permits. Councilmember Ed Smith, who has consistently voted against cannabis operations throughout the city’s process, was absent.

The council began discussing a plan for cannabis in late 2020, which later included a voter-approved measure that established tax rates on businesses.

In late 2023, the city issued a call for cannabis businesses to apply. The 13 applications were narrowed down to eight, and the top eight were interviewed by Mayor Tyller Williamson and Vice Mayor Kim Barber.

The interviews netted a top four: Monterey Responsible and Compliant Retail LLC (Embarc), Element 7 SF4 LLC (Element 7), Monterey Pacific Retail Holdings, Inc. (Culture Cannabis Club) and OTC Monterey, LLC (Off the Charts).

During a drawing, where City of Monterey Property Manager Janna Aldrete pulled the names of the businesses out of a glass jar, dispensary representatives chose their preferred area out of the four listed.

Element 7’s name was pulled from the jar first, and picked the downtown district (which excludes Alvarado Street). Off the Charts was next, and chose Lighthouse Avenue/Foam Street, Culture Cannabis Club selected the Wave Street area, and Embarc was left with North Fremont Street.

Most of the public commenters, which included cannabis industry representatives and others from various organizations, spoke in support of the dispensaries. A few people, however, questioned the city’s process or were against cannabis altogether.

But it was an anonymous email sent the night before to city officials and media that generated the most discussion among the councilmembers and others who spoke. The email pointed to a 2021 lawsuit filed against Element 7, which operates dispensaries across the state, including in Marina, over alleged contractual violations. The case was settled earlier this year.

The email also linked to a short YouTube video, showing Off the Charts CEO Norman Yousif in a meeting saying he has saved money by not paying small vendors.

“You know how much money we’ve saved by not paying the vendors because they’ve been out of business…I ain’t talking about the 30 staple brands that are here to play. I’m talking about these fucking mom and pops that come and go,” he said in the video. “Probably saved hundreds and hundreds of thousands. You don’t have to pay, you don’t have to pay.”

Yousif later apologized in an interview with SFGATE, adding that the quote was taken out of context.

Still, the video was “troubling,” Councilmember Alan Haffa said.

“For me, ethics matters and paying people matters," he said. “Can we trust you to pay your taxes, can we trust you to pay your vendors, can we trust you to pay your employees? That’s important for me to hear.”

Sean Maddocks, Off the Charts’ legal officer, said the business has opened 23 stores in California.  

“We continue to open those stores on terms with our vendors, meaning those vendors trust us to pay them on time, and we’ve continued to do so time and time again throughout our operations,” he said.

The “30-second, illegally recorded, out-of-context statement” damaged the company, Maddocks noted, but many people did not see the outpouring of support Off the Charts received after it went viral.

“I can say straightforwardly that tears were shed by staff members, by leadership, by a lot of people, not because of what was said was true or accurate, but because of the effect it had on us and the company,” he said. “Being a family-run company and treating every staff member like a family, it really impacted us.”