SACRAMENTO — Small commercial business owners in Sacramento are worried the rent on their retail spaces will increase drastically because of commercial marijuana growers, who have the capital to pay a lot more for rent and will be competing with existing businesses for retail space.
Some have expressed these concerns to their local neighborhood associations, who’ve in turn taken them to the city. They don’t feel like they’ve been given a substantial response as to how the city might help mitigate the problem for local businesses.
“Local businesses, small business owners, local services will be pushed out,” said Brian Ebbert, President of the South Land Park Neighborhood Association.
FOX40 spoke with a number of business owners who are concerned that they could be priced out if commercial marijuana growers move in. In fact, one man said that he knows of a grower who can offer double the rent he’s paying and who’s interested in his lot.
“Now you’re telling the current tenant instead of a 5 percent increase, suddenly it’s a 25, 50, a hundred percent increase,” said commercial real estate manager Herb Liverett.
The city has already received 107 applications for permits to grow commercial marijuana. Each one is evaluated on a case-by-case basis and there is no telling how many permits the city will approve.
No matter the number, legal marijuana driving up rent prices is a reality that some business owners will now have to face.
“If you wanna stay at that location, be prepared to pay more rent,” Liverett said.
