Why does it smell like weed on I-10 near Phoenix Sky Harbor? Source under scrutiny
If you've driven on Interstate 10 south of Phoenix Sky Harbor airport and sniffed pungent, musky weed, you're not alone. The city knows, too. Officials set a deadline of July 13 to get control of it.
The problem isn't the cannabis store you've probably Googled and seen on your maps app. Instead, it's a marijuana cultivation facility in the area operated by Trulieve, the parent company of Harvest. It produces and provides marijuana products to dispensaries.
The facility, near 24th and Magnolia streets, is nondescript. It's a warehouse, sandwiched between other warehouses and locked with a gate. It also has an old sign that says "Marketfare Foods," but it is not a food store. And while the cultivation facility has been there since 2013, it doesn't appear on mapping apps.
But it came into public view in April when at least four surrounding business owners complained to the city about a potent "skunk-like odor" emanating from the facility that was "unpleasant for the surrounding community."
Corey Foley, an attorney representing two nearby companies, filed a formal complaint saying the smell had been present for the past year in violation of city code.
Foley wrote that he found the cultivation facility "by simply driving off the I-10 ... and locating the property from smell through only an open car window."
At a public meeting in May where Trulieve sought to renew a use permit it's required to have from the city, Foley asked the city to approve it but with a condition: the facility gets its odor under control by July. Foley pointed to the first use permit Phoenix issued to the facility in 2013, which required as a stipulation that the facility "install and maintain ... an odor control system ..."
Representatives from Trulieve agreed.
Lauren Niehaus, a representative for Trulieve, told city officials in May the company was deploying multiple odor mitigation efforts:
Sealing the outside dumpster.
Sealing the building doorways and roof.
Installing more air purifiers.
Installing new carbon filters.
The public hearing to determine odor compliance is virtual and scheduled for 9 a.m. Thursday. Public comments can be submitted at zoning.adjustments@phoenix.gov.
A spokesperson from the city told The Arizona Republic the city's Neighborhood Services Department has conducted multiple inspections since the initial May 4 meeting.
"No odors have been detected from the facility since facility improvements have been made. NSD has an inspection scheduled with the manager for Wednesday to confirm that no odor can be detected," Teleia Galaviz said in an email Tuesday.
The city did not answer questions about how the odor was measured and what happens if Foley's clients disagree Thursday with the city's assessment.
Members of the public can speak at the online meeting if they register at https://cityofphoenix.webex.com/weblink/register/r2c01015e3b8826132dd9e1cd29863bdc. The registration deadline is Tuesday.
Reporter Taylor Seely covers Phoenix City Hall for The Arizona Republic. Reach her at tseely@arizonarepublic.com, by phone at 480-476-6116 or on Threads @taylor.azc.
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Phoenix monitors marijuana smell on I-10 south of Sky Harbor Airport
