Marianne
New Member
At a busy intersection near Fisherman's Wharf, on a corner where the city's tourist hub bumps up against the quiet residential streets of Russian Hill, a recently stubbed marijuana roach lies in the gutter.
It's just one roach among the cigarette butts and other litter on the street. But a new pot club attempting to open up nearby has local residents putting up stiff opposition, fearing it's only going to get worse -- a lot worse.
"It's tough, because people think we're objecting to marijuana usage as a whole, and we're very supportive of medicinal marijuana," said Ryan Chamberlain, a nearby resident and a member of San Francisco SOS, a civic group organized around quality-of-life issues. "Our problem is the way that medicinal marijuana clubs are being managed. They bring people that abuse the system."
The Green Cross, proposed to open at 2701 Leavenworth St., is the first pot club in San Francisco to face the city's new permit process, which was approved by the Board of Supervisors last year in an attempt to better regulate the business of medical marijuana.
Though it is still illegal on a national level, and federal agents have said they will go after growers, sellers and users -- and have done so -- medical marijuana has been legal under California law for 10 years.
The aim of San Francisco's new permit regulations is to curb the abuses that pot clubs' neighbors have frequently cited: customers buying drugs they intend to use not for medical conditions but to resell on the street; illegal drug use in nearby parks and alleys; and increases in overall crime. Pot clubs have also drawn complaints of increased traffic and noise.
The regulations would force pot club owners to take more responsibility for their customers and work with planners to develop security plans and customer guidelines, city planners said. Aside from the Green Cross, at least four additional pot clubs have submitted applications for permits in San Francisco. Currently, 30 to 40 pot clubs operate in the city -- no one knows exactly how many -- all of which must apply for permits no later than June next year.
Kevin Reed, owner of the Green Cross, still has a way to go in the permitting process -- his first formal Planning Commission hearing is scheduled for Thursday -- and already he's up against serious opposition from neighborhood businesses and residents. At an informational meeting last month, 100 neighbors turned out, mostly to criticize Reed's attempt to open the club, and residents have organized e-mail lists and letter-writing campaigns to rally forces.
Neighbors' primary concerns are over potential increases in traffic and crime, and fears that a pot club would draw illegal drug users to the area. They also point out that three schools are within walking distance, although all are far enough away that the club meets regulation requirements that pot clubs be at least 1,000 feet from schools.
Additionally, neighbors -- primarily nearby business owners -- believe a pot club just doesn't fit into the Fisherman's Wharf neighborhood or the residential areas beyond.
"We're trying to plan this area, to upgrade it, to make it charming. Fisherman's Wharf is the No. 1 visitor attraction in the city, and we need to preserve it," said Chris Martin, director of the waterfront's Cannery complex, which is just a block from the proposed club. "To us, this issue is kind of like having a Home Depot in your area. It's kind of like having a McDonald's on the corner. We'd oppose any of those."
The Fisherman's Wharf site would be Reed's second attempt at running the Green Cross. He closed his first establishment, in the Mission District, last year after neighbors complained of a rise in crime and noise.
Reed said police never proved that crime increased because of his business, but said he's all for increased regulations, and has listened to his potential neighbors in Fisherman's Wharf. He plans to install security cameras in and around his business and hire guards to patrol the street in front of his store. He won't allow smoking on the premises.
"If you don't allow patients access to medication in an environment that is professional and regulated, you're sending them to a crack dealer on the street. Then the patients suffer from the reality of the 'not-in-my-backyard' guys," Reed said. "What we really need to concentrate on is finding ways of regulating it and taxing it and allowing it to help our society."
Chamberlain and other neighbors have said they appreciate the efforts Reed is making to ensure the security of his shop, but they doubt it will be enough.
"Kevin Reed has been very nice, he seems to be very responsible and I think he's a great entrepreneur. But there are elements outside of his control," Chamberlain said. "You can't control your customers to that degree. You can't follow them all the way home, and you can't get into every nook and cranny of their lives and make sure they're being responsible. It's a bigger problem than Kevin Reed can rectify."
Newskhawk: Happykid - 420 Magazine
Author: Erin Allday
Source: San Francisco Chronicle
Copyright: 2006 Hearst Communications Inc.
Contact: letters@sfchronicle.com
Website: SF Gate: San Francisco Chronicle
It's just one roach among the cigarette butts and other litter on the street. But a new pot club attempting to open up nearby has local residents putting up stiff opposition, fearing it's only going to get worse -- a lot worse.
"It's tough, because people think we're objecting to marijuana usage as a whole, and we're very supportive of medicinal marijuana," said Ryan Chamberlain, a nearby resident and a member of San Francisco SOS, a civic group organized around quality-of-life issues. "Our problem is the way that medicinal marijuana clubs are being managed. They bring people that abuse the system."
The Green Cross, proposed to open at 2701 Leavenworth St., is the first pot club in San Francisco to face the city's new permit process, which was approved by the Board of Supervisors last year in an attempt to better regulate the business of medical marijuana.
Though it is still illegal on a national level, and federal agents have said they will go after growers, sellers and users -- and have done so -- medical marijuana has been legal under California law for 10 years.
The aim of San Francisco's new permit regulations is to curb the abuses that pot clubs' neighbors have frequently cited: customers buying drugs they intend to use not for medical conditions but to resell on the street; illegal drug use in nearby parks and alleys; and increases in overall crime. Pot clubs have also drawn complaints of increased traffic and noise.
The regulations would force pot club owners to take more responsibility for their customers and work with planners to develop security plans and customer guidelines, city planners said. Aside from the Green Cross, at least four additional pot clubs have submitted applications for permits in San Francisco. Currently, 30 to 40 pot clubs operate in the city -- no one knows exactly how many -- all of which must apply for permits no later than June next year.
Kevin Reed, owner of the Green Cross, still has a way to go in the permitting process -- his first formal Planning Commission hearing is scheduled for Thursday -- and already he's up against serious opposition from neighborhood businesses and residents. At an informational meeting last month, 100 neighbors turned out, mostly to criticize Reed's attempt to open the club, and residents have organized e-mail lists and letter-writing campaigns to rally forces.
Neighbors' primary concerns are over potential increases in traffic and crime, and fears that a pot club would draw illegal drug users to the area. They also point out that three schools are within walking distance, although all are far enough away that the club meets regulation requirements that pot clubs be at least 1,000 feet from schools.
Additionally, neighbors -- primarily nearby business owners -- believe a pot club just doesn't fit into the Fisherman's Wharf neighborhood or the residential areas beyond.
"We're trying to plan this area, to upgrade it, to make it charming. Fisherman's Wharf is the No. 1 visitor attraction in the city, and we need to preserve it," said Chris Martin, director of the waterfront's Cannery complex, which is just a block from the proposed club. "To us, this issue is kind of like having a Home Depot in your area. It's kind of like having a McDonald's on the corner. We'd oppose any of those."
The Fisherman's Wharf site would be Reed's second attempt at running the Green Cross. He closed his first establishment, in the Mission District, last year after neighbors complained of a rise in crime and noise.
Reed said police never proved that crime increased because of his business, but said he's all for increased regulations, and has listened to his potential neighbors in Fisherman's Wharf. He plans to install security cameras in and around his business and hire guards to patrol the street in front of his store. He won't allow smoking on the premises.
"If you don't allow patients access to medication in an environment that is professional and regulated, you're sending them to a crack dealer on the street. Then the patients suffer from the reality of the 'not-in-my-backyard' guys," Reed said. "What we really need to concentrate on is finding ways of regulating it and taxing it and allowing it to help our society."
Chamberlain and other neighbors have said they appreciate the efforts Reed is making to ensure the security of his shop, but they doubt it will be enough.
"Kevin Reed has been very nice, he seems to be very responsible and I think he's a great entrepreneur. But there are elements outside of his control," Chamberlain said. "You can't control your customers to that degree. You can't follow them all the way home, and you can't get into every nook and cranny of their lives and make sure they're being responsible. It's a bigger problem than Kevin Reed can rectify."
Newskhawk: Happykid - 420 Magazine
Author: Erin Allday
Source: San Francisco Chronicle
Copyright: 2006 Hearst Communications Inc.
Contact: letters@sfchronicle.com
Website: SF Gate: San Francisco Chronicle
