City Councilwoman Linda Ryno remained the lone opponent to approving Ceres' second medical marijuana dispensary last week.

The Ceres City Council voted 3-1 in support of the final adoption of a developer agreement that allows Kase's Journey cannabis dispensary to operate at 4030 Farm Supply Drive. The facility is proposed by Mike Reynolds, the same man who has opened the county's first marijuana manufacturing facility. Mayor Chris Vierra recused himself from the discussion and voting because he owns property near the site. Councilmembers Ken Lane, Bret Durossette and Mike Kline voted to approve the developer agreement.

In December, Ryno said she could not support Reynolds' application. She said had she known what stance the Stanislaus County Board of Supervisors would later take she likely wouldn't have voted to support the first dispensary proposed on Angie. Supervisors decided to honor the wishes of cities that don't want to allow dispensaries by not permitting them within a half a mile of a city's sphere of influence. Ryno said problems with marijuana use will add to pressures on the police department and cautioned the council against depending on the windfall revenues.

Under the three-year developer agreement for Kase's Journey dispensary, Reynolds is allowed to sell medical marijuana at 4030 Farm Supply Drive which is not far from his 22,000-square-foot Kase Manufacturing plant at 4111 Brew Master Drive. The dispensary agreement calls for Reynolds to pay the city a $80,000 fee following the issuance of a marijuana business permit and a monthly fee of $40,000 if the firm earns $500,000 or less in gross receipts that month. The fee rises to $50,000 per month for gross receipts of between $500,001 and $800,000; $75,000 per month for sales of $800,001 to $1.1 million; and $100,000 monthly for sales more than $1,100,001.

The agreement is similar to the one approved in October for Pacafi Cooperative, Inc. to operate a 6,000-square-foot dispensary at 1442 Angie Avenue.
In May the council approved a medical marijuana manufacturing facility for an industrial area in southwest Ceres. The developer agreement for Kase Manufacturing, 4111 Brew Master Drive, calls for the business to pay the city fees of $50,000 per month during the first year. The fee increases to $75,000 per month in the second year and $100,000 per month in the third year. The plant is operational with the first payment to the city to occur on Jan. 2.