Cannabis tax provides $6M in funding for Grass Valley and Nevada City projects
Nevada City Police Chief Highlights Success of New Security Cameras Funded by Prop 64 Grant.
Recently Nevada City Police Chief Dan Foss spoke about the purchase and installation of six security cameras that were placed at various locations throughout Nevada City purchased six months ago.
The cameras are currently located at City Hall, the intersection of Sacramento Street and Prospect Street, Commercial Street mounted above the Chamber of Commerce, the Commercial Street parking lot, Pioneer Park viewing the tennis courts, and Pioneer Park viewing the bandstand area.
In just that very short amount of time, the high quality of the images that the cameras collect have proven to be effective in solving and prosecuting crime.
The Flock cameras do not have the license plate reading abilities, however, they do have the ability to turn them 360 degrees and zoom in to get a closer look at activity and faces.
The cameras do not record audio, and do not have the high tech face recognition features that concern members of the public regarding privacy rights and the potential for misuse of private data potentially leading to misuse of personal information.
In May the cameras became operational, and have since assisted in the investigation, solving, and prosecuting of at least ten crimes, according to Foss.
The installation of the six cameras and the software service to operate them for two years would have cost the City $40,500, however, the City only paid $500, according to Sean Grayson, City Manager because of the Proposition 64 Public Health and Safety Grant Cohort
Nevada City was notified by the California Board of State and Community Corrections (BSCC) that it would receive $3 million over a five-year period in In April 2023 from the Prop 64 Health and Safety grant.
The Prop 64 Health and Safety grant is funded by a portion of tax revenue generated from the cultivation and retail sale of legal adult-use cannabis or cannabis products.
One primary purpose of the Prop 64 grant money is for youth prevention and intervention programs that address youth substance use and addiction and/or intervening to promote healthy behaviors and environments,” according to the grant application pamphlet provided by the BSCC.
Diana Gamzon, Executive Director of the Nevada County Cannabis Alliance, spoke during a public meeting about the opportunities and economic impacts the Prop 64 funding offers.
“In addition to job creation, local tax revenue and new business growth from within, the grants awarded to Nevada City, Grass Valley, and the County, speak to another layer of economic impact from cannabis to our community. In total these grants have come close to adding $9 million to high priority local goals, including: fire prevention, youth use prevention, outdoor recreation, and public safety. These are all a direct result of our elected leaders making decisions to allow for a regulated cannabis industry in Nevada County,” Gamzon said.
Nevada City had to show a ‘need’ in one section of the application for the grant in order to receive the $3 million intended to mitigate the impacts of cannabis legalization in the area.
“Having witnessed a significant increase in adolescent cannabis use at local schools, the current and potential impact of adult use cannabis legalization on our City’s youth is a primary area of concern for the Nevada City Council, the Nevada City Police Department, the Nevada City School District and the community,” the application reads.
At a public meeting in October, Grayson emphasized the intention to spend the money on youth outdoor activity.
“This is cannabis funding. The money comes from cannabis tax at the state level,” Sean Grayson, Nevada City Manager said. “We received $3 million over five years, $1 million for this new youth project. It is to be a drug-free, youth, athletic outdoor facility.”
The plan for a turf field for Seven Hills Middle School has since been altered after the proposals for a skate park in Nevada City were considered by the Parks Initiative Committee instead.
The City has also been presented with a possible opportunity to partner with a local property and business owner for a land donation for the potential skate park.
Christopher Anderson, one of the owners of the Nevada City Tech Center, located at 400 Providence Mine Road in Nevada City offered to donate a strip of land along Reward Street, if the funding came through.
When applying for the $3 million from the BSCC, Nevada City wrote a project summary stating there would be “a heavy emphasis on our schools, local youth, safety, and environmental impact.
A full time school resource officer was hired to be on campuses throughout the City, and whose primary focus will be cannabis youth outreach and education.
Vape detectors and cameras will be placed outside of restrooms at local schools to identify and reduce cannabis use by youth, according to the application by the City.
The grant money can also be used for inspection and enforcement of cannabis businesses, behavioral and mental health treatment, cannabis product safety testing/safety equipment, pesticide impact efforts, drinking and waste water system updates, and other environmental-system updates.
A third purpose area for Prop 64 Health and Safety grant is public safety referring to the welfare and protection of the general public from dangers such as crimes.
The grant money provided fire station apparatus bay doors, a fire department generator, and roof for Station 5 located at 201 Providence Mine Road in Nevada City.
Prop 64 Health and Safety grant also funded the hiring of a fuels reduction equipment operator and masticator to clear high fire risk areas.
Grass Valley and Prop 64
Grass Valley also received $3 million over a five year period from the Prop 64 funding from the BSCC in 2023.
“The Grass Valley Cannabis Impact Mitigation Project will specifically focus on addressing impacts from its emerging commercial cannabis business activities on its residents, the community, and most importantly its youth,” the application to BSCC from Grass Valley written by Kiser, said.
A strong emphasis on providing opportunities for family friendly outdoor activities for all ages was also mentioned in the grant application.
The project will hire a full-time park resource officer whose primary focus will be cannabis education, enforcement and intervention for youth utilizing the skate park, future bike park, and those attending City sponsored events.
The funding is expected to allow for the expansion of an existing summer program to include cannabis education.
Additionally, the project includes procurement of surveillance cameras, vape detectors, and a patrol vehicle in Grass Valley parks where youth under the age of 21 use cannabis and other tobacco products unlawfully.
A remote-control masticator to clear land with a high risk for fire was purchased by the City of Grass Valley with funds from the Health and Safety grant, along with a police officer trained to operate the machine.
“The machine itself was about $200,000, and they last for a long time,” Lieutenant Brian Blakemore from the Grass Valley Police Department said.
At this point in time, the majority of the mastication has been on city property, however, in time the masticator could be used on private property, especially for those who may not have the means to clear their land themselves, Blakemore said.
Having a sworn- in police officer operating the machine makes the work more efficient if illegal campgrounds are discovered.
“It’s not something that a typical police officer would be doing, however, it was very efficient for the position to be with a police officer because if that officer comes on to the parcel where a camp is intercepted or or located, that officer can shut off the machine and immediately go into the abatement process. He can try to connect the individual with services, and he can begin the abatement and begin the legal process of getting people removed,” Blakemore said.
Officer Brian Hooper is trained in the sensitive safety measures to assist people who are camping illegally; if someone other than an officer encountered people camping illegally, they would have to waste time calling for the officer who would then have to locate the camp, and then begin the steps of abatement.
In addition to removing illegal camps that sometimes add to the risk of fire danger, Officer Hooper can clear more brush and trees in a day or two that would take a hand crew weeks to do, Blakemore said.
“He walks behind it. He has to be proximal to it so that he can make sure that he isn’t going to run over anything that we shouldn’t run over,” Blakemore said. “Tents and personal belongings are not destroyed.”
The benefit of clearing mainly public parks is it allows the largest number of people to come into those areas, and it discourages youth and others from using the bushes and thickly wooded areas for smoking cannabis, tobacco, or vaping.
Nevada County and Bright Futures for Youth
A Prop 64 Public Health and Safety Cohort 2 grant was received by the County of Nevada about two years ago for $1 million, and the lead public agency who filed the application was Nevada County Superintendent of Schools Office.
Bright Futures for Youth’s SAFE program also received Prop 64 Health and Safety grant money in the amount of $937,000 to expand outreach and case management efforts for youth experiencing homelessness, an increasing and often hard-to-see problem in Nevada County.
“The three-year grant through Elevate Youth California – a project of The Center at Sierra Health Foundation under contract with the California Department of Health Care Services – is the largest ever for Bright Futures for Youth,” according to the BFFY website.
The funds help the SAFE program to add a drop-in center for youth at risk of experiencing homelessness, establish more comprehensive services, and – most importantly – hire several staff members.
