I am writing to respectfully request your thoughtful consideration in allowing the creation of a serene and healing tea garden in the enclosed rear yard of my dispensary, A Therapeutic Alternative, located at 3015 H Street in East Sacramento. This space would be discreet, not visible from the street, and would not permit onsite smoking or vaporizing.
I am requesting your input on the Agenda Item 16, regarding Amendments to Title 17 to include the position to allow non-conforming uses such as mine to go through the Planning Commission Conditional Use Permit and Public Hearing process, allowing my neighborhood to decide whether I should be allowed to provide this service or not.
When the City Council approved onsite consumption permits for dispensaries last year, I understood this decision as an opportunity for storefront dispensaries that meet regulatory requirements to provide safe, community-oriented spaces for consumers across various neighborhoods. Previous Councilmember Valenzuela, specifically made an amendment to the proposal to allow for our tea garden. The motion was passed unanimously.
However, recent proposed amendments to Title 17 jeopardize this opportunity. The proposed mandatory buffer zone regarding setbacks from sensitive uses would exclude A Therapeutic Alternative from the permitting process, despite our long-standing commitment to operating responsibly near many sensitive uses for the last 15 years.
For over 15 years, A Therapeutic Alternative has been a pillar of our community, fostering safety, support, and engagement. We have helped maintain security in our neighborhood, particularly during challenging times such as the pandemic, civil unrest, and the rise in homelessness. As active members of the McKinley East Sacramento Neighborhood Association’s Yellow Brick Road Project, our security team ensures the safety of children walking to and from Miwok Middle School. We have also established a direct line of communication with McKinley Montessori School, providing our security team's contact information—an invaluable resource that has been utilized on multiple occasions. Additionally, we take great pride in keeping our neighborhood clean through daily trash pickup, earning the appreciation of our neighbors.
As a medically focused dispensary, we primarily serve customers over the age of 60, operating with the professionalism and discretion of a doctor’s office. Our goal is to create a tranquil, educational environment where seniors can learn how to safely and effectively incorporate cannabis into their wellness routines.
This tea garden would align with the vision of other approved onsite consumption spaces in Sacramento while embodying the unique and compassionate ethos of A Therapeutic Alternative. Our motto, “We are the place you can send your mom to—and your mom’s mom,” reflects our unwavering commitment to creating a welcoming and supportive space for seniors. There is no other dispensary in Sacramento where older adults can feel as comfortable or receive the level of education and care that we provide.

Please do not go to Sun Spa, located at 6804 Fruitridge Rd #A
Sacramento, CA, 95820, as well as q spa, located at 4215 Norwood avenue, suite #12, sacramento, ca, 95838, They will all claim that they are too busy for you.

Re: File ID 2025-00925 – Ordinance Amending Title 17 (Cannabis Land Uses)

Dear Mayor and Councilmembers,

My name is Maisha Bahati, Co-Founder and CEO of Crystal Nugs, a CORE-certified social equity dispensary in Midtown Sacramento. In 2022, our dispensary was approved for a conditional use permit, and since then we have operated responsibly under City standards. We have already invested more than $70,000 into preparing a compliant lounge space, including ventilation upgrades, because we believe in this program and are committed to implementing it correctly.

As a CORE equity operator and Sacramento’s first Black woman dispensary owner, I know the barriers that small and equity businesses face. That’s why I support staff’s recommendation, which provides clarity, fairness, and enforceable standards for moving this program forward. At the same time, I also acknowledge the Planning and Design Commission’s approach creates a pathway through the CUP process for operators who face unique zoning challenges, such as proximity to churches. I believe either pathway can work, as long as equity operators like myself are not shut out of this opportunity.

I also recognize that another woman-owned dispensary, A Therapeutic Alternative, also faces a unique circumstances due to historic zoning and sensitive use buffers, and I support creating a fair pathway for them to be considered within this program.

Crystal Nugs is prepared and ready to lead by example and this ordinance will allow equity operators like myself, along with other committed businesses, to move Sacramento forward with safe and equitable on-site consumption lounges.

Respectfully,
Maisha Bahati
Co-Founder & CEO, Crystal Nugs