The arrival of cannabis to Marina means displacement for some local businesses.

Ray Cardinale belongs to one of the longest established Italian American families on the Monterey Peninsula. “My grandfather pioneered the fishing industry here,” says Cardinale, who is 85. “I fished the end of the sardine era.”

Nowadays, Cardinale earns his living through real estate, not fishing, but the business is still familial. A cannabis company had approached him about renting out a property in Marina for a dispensary. “My first impression was to say no,” Cardinale says. “But my genius grandson said, ‘Nanu, are you crazy? You have to talk to them.’”

After a lunch meeting at the Fish House, he ended up sealing the deal. A brand called Stiiizy is going to open a shop at Cardinale’s property at 3170 Del Monte Blvd. on a 10-year lease, holding one of three available cannabis permits from the city of Marina.

“When I got a chance to bring in cannabis that pays market rate and then some, I went for it with both legs,” Cardinale says. “They told me they are going to spend $1 million to renovate my building. It was a no-brainer for me.”

This outcome was less ideal for Cardinale’s existing tenants, which included Diva’s Beauty Studio and DocuTec, a copier and printer sales and repair business. They received notice that Stiiizy would be moving in within a few months once building permits were approved.

Chris Harrison, the owner of DocuTec, says the news hit him when his business was already suffering due to the pandemic. After more than a decade at that location, many customers know the store by location.

“Cannabis is warping the real estate market,” Harrison says. “They come in offering a lot of money and in the process, they are stepping on people, running them out of business.” Harrison and his few employees have been working from home. In his search for a new location, he’s encountered landlords who have also been approached by cannabis companies. 

From Cardinale’s perspective, his tenants were on month-to-month leases paying below-market rent. “After all, I’m the landlord, I’m entitled to fair market rent,” he says. “I could’ve rented it to somebody else who wasn’t cannabis.”

The legalization of cannabis has created many opportunities for cash-strapped cities and entrepreneurs, but as the case of DocuTec shows, there are also trade-offs. Small long-standing businesses can get displaced.

The potential for displacement was on the mind of Marina Councilmember Lisa Berkley when she voted to award the city’s coveted cannabis permits. 

“We were advised by our attorney that was not to be part of the consideration because we are getting in the way of contractual business law,” she says. “The cannabis decision was one of the hardest we had to make as a council because you had to remove your personal feelings about businesses that were here for a long time.”

Stiiizy, meanwhile, offered a written comment from Brian Mitchell, CEO of Shryne Group Inc., which owns the Stiiizy brand.  

“Stiiizy has always been a people-first company and we never take for granted the impact that our stores have on our communities,” Mitchell said, adding that his company has worked “very closely” with Marina officials and with Cardinale and his prior tenants. “Stiiizy always strives to have a positive impact on the community and to proactively balance the needs of all of our stakeholders."