City Council approves zoning ordinance, discusses marijuana ordinance

Feb. 7—Meadville City Council on Tuesday gave final approval to the city's first comprehensive zoning ordinance revision in 30 years and discussed changes that proved more complicated than anticipated for a recently instituted local marijuana law.

Council members voted unanimously to approve the zoning ordinance.

According to city Planner Peter Grella, significant changes include:

—Reduced requirements on lot areas to allow easier development vacant lots;

—Reduced restrictions on where businesses and homes can be located;

—Expanded areas where group homes, rooming houses and shelter services are permitted;

—Up-to-date policies on short-term rentals;

—More flexibility for repurposing units in multi-unit buildings; and

—Relaxed requirements regarding minimum parking for businesses.

The new ordinance also reduces the number of different zoning districts while increasing the types of allowable developments in those districts, according to Grella.

In the only new business on the agenda, council members discussed changes to a local marijuana ordinance approved in late 2021. The law allowed crimes involving marijuana-related paraphernalia or small amounts of marijuana — up to 30 grams, or just over an ounce — to be charged as summary offenses rather than misdemeanors, as required by state criminal code. At the time it was passed, members discussed both the desire for such crimes to have less long-term impact on defendants and the possibility of generating more revenue for the city.

The local summary offense charge comes with a $300 fine. The fine, while significantly less than what would be assessed for a misdemeanor, goes to the city. The city receives a much smaller portion of misdemeanor fines, police officials said at the time the ordinance was passed.

After just over two years, the city's marijuana ordinance is working well, City Manager Maryann Menanno said on Monday. The planned discussion, she added, would focus on minor changes that respond to feedback from Magisterial District Judge Samuel Pendolino.

"Most importantly, it's not clogging up the Court of Common Pleas," she said. "Anything can be taken care of at the magistrate's level, but it has also been making money."

On Tuesday, however, one of those changes drew concern from Councilwoman Autumn Vogel, who noted that the proposed revisions added the option of up to 30 days in jail as a penalty for possession of marijuana-related paraphernalia or a small amount of the drug itself. The possibility of jail had purposely been omitted when the ordinance was approved in 2021.

The addition of potential jail time was intended "to assist the district justice in the collection of costs and fees that are assessed as a result of violations," attorney Tim Wachter told council.

"The option to be put into jail for 30 days is — doesn't sit super well with me if you can't pay the $300," Vogel said. "To spend 30 days in jail for getting caught with weed could really ruin someone's life, even if we're taking away the misdemeanor charge."

Wachter noted that if council chooses not to include the jail option requested by the district judge, the judge could refuse to enforce the ordinance, effectively making the misdemeanor-level charge the only option for city police.

"I think, practically, if you want to have a city provision that is less than state code that is going to be enforced," Wachter said, "you should consider going with the recommendation of the individual who is going to be enforcing it."

Given that the fine is $300, Vogel suggested that the maximum time of incarceration be about two days, citing the state's minimum wage. With minimum wage at $7.25 per hour, 48 hours of minimum-wage level pay would come out to slightly more than the fee amount.

While the idea did not gain much traction from other council members, Vogel's request for additional data on how many people would potentially be affected by the possibility of jail time did. Council, which meets again Tuesday at 6 p.m., will likely return to the discussion in the coming weeks.

In an interview before council's meeting, Meadville Police Department Chief Michael Stefanucci told The Meadville Tribune that 84 people had been charged under the city's local marijuana ordinance last year — 48 for possession of a small amount of marijuana; 36 for possession of marijuana-related drug paraphernalia.

Information on the amount of fines actually collected as a result of those charges was not available. If all 84 defendants were found guilty and all paid $300 fines, a total of $25,200 would have been collected.

Mike Crowley can be reached at (814) 724-6370 or by email at mcrowley@meadvilletribune.com.