Murrieta Council votes to oppose De Luz cannabis grow

By Doug Spoon, Editor

The Murrieta City Council on Tuesday authorized a letter of opposition to be sent to the Riverside County Board of Supervisors regarding a proposed cannabis processing plant in the unincorporated hillside community of De Luz.

The Board of Supervisors will consider at its Jan. 11 meeting the request by Fuego Farms to build 17 greenhouses and a 68,000-square-foot cannabis processing structure in De Luz – a rural community in the hills west of Temecula. According to Murrieta City Council members, the large marijuana grow would have adverse effects on Murrieta and surrounding communities.

“The issue is not whether marijuana is legal, but the location of the grow in a residential community,” said Mayor Pro Tem Lisa DeForest in a special City Council meeting on Tuesday night. “There are five homes within 200-700 feet of this project.”

DeForest cited adverse affects from fans, lighting, and noise from a processing plant that is scheduled to run from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. each day, along with the stench that will be noticeable well beyond the homes in the area. She also noted the potential for negative impact on ground water in the area, and the fact there is only one Sheriff’s deputy assigned to an area that could become the site of more criminal activity.

Council member Lori Stone was also outspoken in her opposition to the project, which has already been approved by the County’s planning department.

“I lived in Southern Oregon for three years,” Stone said about a region that has become the site of numerous marijuana and hemp farms in recent years. “They are overrun by cultivation facilities. The stench is absolutely horrendous. There is labor trafficking and water contamination. Crime has significantly increased.

“The fact that this project plans to have armed guards 24-7 and 12-foot fencing is an indication of the potential for criminal activity there.”

Marijuana cultivation is not allowed in the City of Murrieta, but it is allowed in unincorporated county areas such as De Luz.

“I believe there will be many unforeseen circumstances that arise from this,” Stone said.

Asked for his opinion of the project, Murrieta Police Chief Tony Conrad said he would be concerned about an increasing element of crime in the area.

“There’s a reason we have an ordinance not to allow marijuana cultivation in Murrieta,” Conrad said. “At some point there will be theft or robbery. We would be naïve to think it would not occur.”

Conrad also said that if marijuana is transported from the grow site down De Luz Road to Guava Street for distribution, it would be traveling through the City of Murrieta.

Five members of the public made comments, all in opposition to the project.

“I live next door to this project,” said Walter Hessler, a retired physician. “We’re quite alarmed about this. And we just heard about this at the last minute. I’m not trying to argue against the legality; there are places they would probably welcome this. In De Luz, it would do damage.”

John Lieberg, who lives a quarter-mile from the site, said the project “is misplaced in a residential area." James Waite, who lives 600 feet from the site, said the community has gathered 622 signed petitions against the project. He said he believes an Environmental Impact Report should be required by the county.

Kassen Klein said it was important to establish a legal record of negative impacts based on facts.

“The letter needs to stick to how this affects Murrieta,” he said. “Direct the City to review the mitigated negative declaration.”

Jonathan Ingram, installed that night as Mayor, said the letter should include language requesting the EIR and, if there truly is none, requesting one be done. The letter, to be drafted by assistant city attorney Jeff Morris, would include any proven data reported by residents at the meeting and would ask the Board of Supervisors to continue the matter until a later date.

A motion to that effect passed unanimously.