Commercial pot banned in most of Napa County

Some North Bay entrepreneurs think wine and weed make an elegant pairing. But Napa County has decided it won’t allow pot farming in most of its territory.

In a unanimous vote Tuesday, the Napa County Board of Supervisors voted to indefinitely ban all commercial cannabis activities in unincorporated areas, including the growing, processing and selling of pot in stores. The restrictions won’t affect pot retailers in cities, such as Harvest of Napa in the city of Napa, or cannabis delivery companies.

“For all commercial activities, it’s banned. We’ll talk to community stakeholders and we could revisit the issue of commercial cannabis eventually, but until then, the county’s point is very clear,” said David Morrison, director of the Napa County planning department.

The ordinance takes effect on Nov. 21, almost two weeks before an extended moratorium on commercial pot cultivation in the county was set to expire. The move concludes a contentious battle between backers and opponents of weed farming in Wine Country.

In June, the Napa County Cannabis Association had gathered more than 8,000 signatures to put a measure allowing commercial cultivation of pot on the March 2020 ballot. But in August, the group pulled the initiative off the ballot, hoping to work with county supervisors in crafting an ordinance to legalize smallscale cannabis farming on singleacre plots.

But opponents, including local winemakers and the Napa County Farm Bureau, said cannabis cultivation would hurt other farming, wineries and tourism.

Meanwhile, in neighboring Sonoma County supervisors are approving cannabis farming permits on agricultural land that meets county rules.

California legalized the sale and use of recreational marijuana following a 2016 ballot measure but left many of the details up to local authorities. Napa County supervisors enacted the moratorium and renewed it in January 2018.

Residents in Napa can still grow cannabis for personal use, Morrison said.