The Turlock City Council will take up an amended agreement with the city of Modesto for fire administration services at its Tuesday meeting.

City staff has recommended approving an agreement with the city of Modesto to move forward with emergency medical service at the outset and hiring a city of Turlock Fire Marshal. That’s in line with council's direction from its March 24 meeting, when the council directed staff, by a 3-2 vote, to negotiate a Fire Administration Services Agreement with the city of Modesto and return with a proposed agreement that includes a citizen advisory board with representation from the firefighters’ union.

Mayor Amy Bublak, Vice Mayor Rebecka Monez (District 2), and Councilmember Erika Phillips (District 4) voted in favor of staying with Modesto, while Councilmembers Kevin Bixel (District 1) and Cassandra Abram (District 3) voted for Turlock autonomy.

Several versions of a potential agreement were provided to the council: fire chief services only, fire chief and fire marshal services, fire chief and EMS, or fire chief, fire marshal and EMS.

“This is a complex and, at times, emotional issue,” said Chris Jelinek, the interim deputy fire chief for Turlock. “There are valid perspectives on all sides of this issue. And we understand and respect those concerns. … We’re all striving to the same outcome: we want to deliver the best possible customer service and fire protection to the city of Turlock.”

The proposed costs for the first year (July 1 through June 30, 2027) of the contract is $407,706 for fire chief services, $193,960.44 for fire marshal services, and $113,543.52 for EMS.

In other matters on the agenda, the council will consider the annual review and hear the first read of an ordinance amending the development agreements with cannabis retailers FF Farms, Firehouse, Natural Healing Center, and Perfect Union, as well as cultivator Plan4Dream.

The city’s pilot cannabis program was initiated in 2019 by a split 3-2 vote of the city council. Former councilmembers Gil Esquer, Nicole Larson, and Andrew Nosrati voted to approve, while Becky Arellano and current Mayor Amy Bublak were opposed.

Earlier this month, the city’s planning commission voted to recommend extended development agreements with all five.

“We want to end the pilot program and regularize these as normal businesses,” outgoing City Attorney George Petrulakis told the planning commission. “At the end of the day, that requires a tax to be passed and some amendments to be made to the municipal code, then we can rotate out of these development agreements.”

As part of their development agreements, the dispensaries were required to pay a public benefit fee of 5.25 percent of gross receipts or $25,000 (whichever sum is greater) in the first year, with the lump-sum option increasing by $5,000 per year in the subsequent four years.

The city is considering a move to a cannabis tax, which requires the approval of city voters.

Until that happens, the city is proposing to amend the monthly minimum payment and move solely to a percentage payment. The city would recommend up to 9 percent of gross receipts but would propose to set the amount at 5.25 percent through May 2027, at which time the city council could set a new public benefit amount within that proposed range. The city believes that would provide more stability for operators.

To date, dispensaries have generated $8 million in public benefit funds, with Firehouse paying more than half of that total – $4.1 million – since opening its doors in August 2020. Perfect Union has contributed nearly $2.4 million since opening in September 2020; NHC has paid $1 million since opening in May 2023; FF Farms has paid just over $500,000 since opening last year.