The City Clerk on Monday gave a group of medical marijuana proponents
a green light to gather signatures for a ballot measure intended to
allow about 100 pot dispensaries to remain open in the city.
According to an official summary, the ordinance would allow groups of
five or fewer to jointly grow and share marijuana. Collectives of six
or more would be technically prohibited under the ordinance. But the
city would barred from prosecuting a select 100 or so dispensaries which
meet certain conditions, including having opened before Sept. 14, 2007,
when the city first tried to place a moratorium on new pot shops.
The so-called limited immunity plan is supported by United Food and
Commercial Workers Local 770, which represents about 500 workers at 50 dispensaries, among others.
In addition to having opened prior to the September 2007 cutoff,
collectives must not have ceased operations for 90 days or more except
to relocate or in response to federal prosecution; must have no access
from adjacent residential zoned lots; and must pass annual police
department background checks.
Qualifying dispensaries would have 300 days to move to locations that
are a certain distance from schools, parks and other designated places.
A plan by City Councilman Paul Koretz similar to the proposed ballot
initiative is also moving through the city legislative process.
Backers of the proposed ballot measure have until Dec. 7 to gather
41,138 valid signatures to put the measure before voters on the May 21,
2013, general election ballot.
The move comes less than one month after medical marijuana proponents
were successful in getting the City Council to repeal a ban on medical
marijuana dispensaries.
The City Council in July had approved an ordinance banning all
storefront medical marijuana dispensaries but allowing patients and
licensed caregivers to grow their own cannabis. The so-called "gentle
ban" ordinance also allowed three or fewer parties to collectively grow
pot.
The Committee to Protect Patients and Neighborhoods
