Council revisits idea of lifting ban on cannabis sales in Lynnwood

At its work session Monday, the Lynnwood City Council revisited the idea of lifting the city’s ban on cannabis retail sales within city limits – a conversation that’s been ongoing in the city since recreational marijuana use was legalized statewide in 2012. 

The council also interviewed Jody Nummer, an applicant for the city’s History and Heritage Board, reviewed the city’s prosecutorial services and had further discussions on the city’s Unified Development Code (UDC). 

There are currently no cannabis stores in city limits, due to a permanent ban on sales passed by the city council in 2015. The idea was raised again in April 2024, when Council President Nick Coelho suggested revisiting the ban. 

In September 2024, the council approved Councilmember George Hurst’s motion to direct Lynnwood’s Planning Commission to review the city’s current cannabis sale regulations and develop recommendations for amending city code to permit sales within the city limits. Staff from the city’s Development and Business Services Department presented these recommendations at Monday’s council meeting. 

The Planning Commission recommended the council consider a motion to allow the sale of cannabis mainly along a portion of Highway 99 in Lynnwood. The proposed area starts at the city’s northern border near Keeler’s Corner along 164th Street Southwest and ends about 1,000 yards south of the intersection of Highway 99 and 180th Street Southwest. 

Additionally, the proposal would allow cannabis sales in a triangle plot of land east of Alderwood Mall – from Alderwood Mall Parkway to the area  I-405 and I-5 intersect. This land is currently the home of Target, Kohl’s, Ashley Furniture and World Market. 

However, the city would still have to follow state regulations around cannabis sales if it chooses to lift the ban. State law prohibits cannabis sales within 1,000 feet of schools, playgrounds or parks, recreation centers, child care centers, public transit centers, libraries or arcades without a 21-plus age restriction. However, cities can pass an ordinance to reduce buffers to 100 feet, except around schools and public playgrounds. 

Planning Commission members also recommended the city hold off on allowing cannabis sales in the City Center development area until construction of the future Town Square Park is completed, City Principal Planner Rebecca Samy told the council Monday. City planning staff estimate the park will be completed between 2030 and 2032, Planning Manager Karl Almgren said. 

Council President Coelho expressed concern over the delay in considering sales in the City Center.

“When I look at the map, I see a green desert,” Coelho said. “And it just seems like part of our city is just not going to have one of these ever sited in it, where it’s going to be the densest and most populous part of our city. That just seems backwards to me. So any workaround we could figure out, I think would be to our benefit.” 

Councilmember Hurst, who made an unsuccessful motion to overturn the ban in 2021, echoed Coelho’s sentiment. He said he was “having a problem” with potentially restricting businesses from opening in the City Center “because of something that may happen a decade from now.” 

Almgren said if the council eventually decided to allow cannabis sales in the City Center, they would be “grandfathered” into the area, and wouldn’t have to move once the park was built. 

“They would not have to relocate once the park is established,” he said. “Only new businesses would not be allowed to move into that zone or into that buffer area” after the park is completed, he added. 

Councilmember Patrick Decker was the only councilmember at Monday’s meeting opposed to lifting the ban, a stance he’s held since the conversation was brought up a year ago. He expressed concerns over potential health impacts of cannabis use, citing data from several studies on the matter. 

“I would point out to the council that the Washington State Department of Health spends millions of dollars on prevention and intervention of cannabis use,” he said. “Facilitating an activity that our tax dollars are going to prevent seems counterproductive to me.”

Hurst replied that the state spends money on discouraging the use of tobacco and alcohol, yet sales of those products are allowed in the city. 

“Councilman Decker, maybe we become a dry city and we just ban alcohol in this city – that’s where your logic ends,” Hurst said. “Residents of Washington legalized cannabis. This is just legal business within our city. We don’t have buffers for sales of alcohol, I just look at this as we are restricting a business from coming into our city.”

Mayor Christine Frizzell said the council can expect further discussion on the matter in future meetings. 

UDC: Residential Districts 

The city is clarifying and redesigning its code and regulations on development and zoning. The new-and-improved document is called the Unified Development Code – state lawmakers recently passed a law requiring municipalities in Washington to adopt a UDC. 

City staff members have been working on the code since 2023, keeping the council updated along the way. The council has until the end of June to adopt a code, or else it will be required to adopt a model UDC designed by the state, city documents say. 

Almgren briefed the council Monday on residential districts. These districts, as outlined in the city’s Comprehensive Plan, are designed to allow for diverse housing options in Lynnwood. Three districts are proposed for the UDC: Residential neighborhood, residential multi-family and manufactured home parks. 

The residential neighborhood district (RN) allows three units per lot and provides “bonus unit opportunities” for developers who either build near public transit or include an affordable unit in their project. Units allowed in the RN include single-family homes, duplexes, triplexes, fourplexes, courtyard apartments, cottage housing and townhomes. 

The manufactured home park district (MHP) aims to preserve existing mobile home parks to maintain “this important source of affordable detached single-family and senior housing,” according to city documents. This district keeps development standards currently outlined in the city’s code. 

The residential family, 45-foot height limit district (RM-45) makes way for high-density, mixed-use, multi-family housing, also known as apartments. As described in the name, these units can’t exceed 45 feet in height, but that limit is flexible for up to 75 feet for family sized apartments, affordable units or senior housing. This district consolidates two existing zones in Lynnwood: Residential multi-family medium zone and the high zone. 

Almgren said members of city staff are “wrestling” with how to implement regulations around building size per lot, and are specifically considering a maximum building footprint unit to discourage people from building large homes. Staff are attempting to work out a requirement to break up the units on a large plot of land, allowing multiple families to live on a lot, rather than just one family in a large house in certain zones. 

Staff are set to continue fine tuning the UDC draft, with an online open house scheduled April 29 to allow public feedback. Almgren estimates completion of the draft in May, after which the council is set to review and potentially amend it before its scheduled to vote before the end of June on whether to adopt it. 

Prosecutorial Services 

Representatives from Zachor, Stock & Krepps, Inc., the firm the city hired to do its prosecutorial services, gave the council an update on what the firm has worked on recently. 

The presentation covered the firm’s role in prosecuting all misdemeanor offenses within the city, as well as felony cases that the county prosecutor declines due to resource limitations, particularly non-serious, non-person crimes. They handle both direct filings by police officers and review filings that require a prosecutor’s assessment. 

Yelena Stock, one of the organization’s prosecuting attorneys, gave an overview of their work with the Law Enforcement Assisted Diversion program in Lynnwood. Individuals can qualify for LEAD based on factors like homelessness or substance use disorder. The program connects them with treatment and resources, often leading to case dismissal if an individual works on an improvement program with law enforcement. LEAD referrals can also be issued by officers in the field even if no crime has occurred, as a resource connection.

The program was funded by a state grant, but that funding runs out in June, Stock said. She said she will continue to collect data and present it to the state in an attempt to secure more funding. 

In other business, the council interviewed Jody Nummer for the History and Heritage Board. Nummer is a U.S. Coast Guard veteran with experience in security and management. He has experience working with local historical groups, such as the Center for Wooden Boats in Seattle, and hopes to bring his historical passion and knowledge to Lynnwood. 

The council also reviewed and discussed an ordinance on Development and Business Services fees. City staff are asking the council to allow the city to amend the ordinance to fix slight errors. 

The full meeting can be found on the city’s website. 

— Contact Ashley at ashley@myedmondsnews.com.