Uncle Ike's Pot Shop will stay open – for now, at least.
Mount Calvary Christian Center, which is next door to the recreational pot store in the Central District, has sued over the store's location, and asked a judge to close the store until the lawsuit is decided.
King County Superior Court Judge Jean Rietschel on Friday said no.
"An injunction is an extraordinary remedy ... and the burden is on the plaintiff," Rietschel said. "I will not grant it."
Mount Calvary Christian Center is suing Uncle Ike's, the city of Seattle and the state Liquor Control Board, alleging that the store is about 250 feet from a teen center operated by the church.
Marijuana stores are required to be more than 1,000 feet from parks, recreation centers, schools and other prohibited venues where kids are thought to hang out. Churches are not a prohibited venue.
To get an injunction, the church needed to prove it was likely to win the pending lawsuit or that allowing the store to remain open would cause irreparable harm. Rietschel said the church accomplished neither.
The central question in the lawsuit – scheduled to be heard next November – is whether the church's teen center is considered a recreation center. As defined by state law, a recreation center hosts a "broad range of activities."
"At present, the teen center is opened primarily on Sundays for Kidz for Christ ministry and on Wednesday nights for youth Bible study and two Fridays a month" for youth-group meetings, said Rietschel. "Those activities by their types and hours ... do not meet the burden of a broad range of activities."
Rietschel also said the church had not proved harm to children if Uncle Ike's remained open until the lawsuit is decided. "There's no showing of a failure of security at Ike's ... no showing of any sales or attempted sales to minors. I don't see any actual showing of injury," she said.
Uncle Ike's argued that if the store were to shut down, it would lose "approximately $20,000 in sales per day, and in an emerging market where market share is crucial."
Last month, Uncle Ike's pulled in $569,615 in revenue, according to figures published by the Liquor Control Board.
Ian Eisenberg, who owns Uncle Ike's, said he was pleased to be able to conduct "business as usual" and planned to have "a nice sativa with lunch" in celebration.
"We'll prove we're good neighbors and do everything we can to help the church," Eisenberg said. "We've always wanted dialogue with the church."
The Rev. Reggie Witherspoon of Mount Calvary Christian Center said the ruling was disheartening but that the church's fight would continue. "It's not over. We're not going away," he said.
Witherspoon said the church would chart a new legal strategy. Would he consider dialogue with Uncle Ike's?
"Anything is possible," said Witherspoon. "At this point, I'm feeling emotional and disheartened."
Witherspoon said that if the two sides were to talk, he would consider pushing to make sure Uncle Ike's wasn't open on Sundays.
In October, another judge denied the church a temporary restraining order against Uncle Ike's. The church wanted to stop the marijuana store's operations ahead of a harvest festival.
News Moderator: Shandar @ 420 MAGAZINE ®
Source: The Seattle Times | News, sports, weather, events in the Northwest
Contact: Services | Seattle Times Newspaper Pot store stays open, judge rules, until church’s suit heard | Local News | The Seattle Times
Mount Calvary Christian Center, which is next door to the recreational pot store in the Central District, has sued over the store's location, and asked a judge to close the store until the lawsuit is decided.
King County Superior Court Judge Jean Rietschel on Friday said no.
"An injunction is an extraordinary remedy ... and the burden is on the plaintiff," Rietschel said. "I will not grant it."
Mount Calvary Christian Center is suing Uncle Ike's, the city of Seattle and the state Liquor Control Board, alleging that the store is about 250 feet from a teen center operated by the church.
Marijuana stores are required to be more than 1,000 feet from parks, recreation centers, schools and other prohibited venues where kids are thought to hang out. Churches are not a prohibited venue.
To get an injunction, the church needed to prove it was likely to win the pending lawsuit or that allowing the store to remain open would cause irreparable harm. Rietschel said the church accomplished neither.
The central question in the lawsuit – scheduled to be heard next November – is whether the church's teen center is considered a recreation center. As defined by state law, a recreation center hosts a "broad range of activities."
"At present, the teen center is opened primarily on Sundays for Kidz for Christ ministry and on Wednesday nights for youth Bible study and two Fridays a month" for youth-group meetings, said Rietschel. "Those activities by their types and hours ... do not meet the burden of a broad range of activities."
Rietschel also said the church had not proved harm to children if Uncle Ike's remained open until the lawsuit is decided. "There's no showing of a failure of security at Ike's ... no showing of any sales or attempted sales to minors. I don't see any actual showing of injury," she said.
Uncle Ike's argued that if the store were to shut down, it would lose "approximately $20,000 in sales per day, and in an emerging market where market share is crucial."
Last month, Uncle Ike's pulled in $569,615 in revenue, according to figures published by the Liquor Control Board.
Ian Eisenberg, who owns Uncle Ike's, said he was pleased to be able to conduct "business as usual" and planned to have "a nice sativa with lunch" in celebration.
"We'll prove we're good neighbors and do everything we can to help the church," Eisenberg said. "We've always wanted dialogue with the church."
The Rev. Reggie Witherspoon of Mount Calvary Christian Center said the ruling was disheartening but that the church's fight would continue. "It's not over. We're not going away," he said.
Witherspoon said the church would chart a new legal strategy. Would he consider dialogue with Uncle Ike's?
"Anything is possible," said Witherspoon. "At this point, I'm feeling emotional and disheartened."
Witherspoon said that if the two sides were to talk, he would consider pushing to make sure Uncle Ike's wasn't open on Sundays.
In October, another judge denied the church a temporary restraining order against Uncle Ike's. The church wanted to stop the marijuana store's operations ahead of a harvest festival.
News Moderator: Shandar @ 420 MAGAZINE ®
Source: The Seattle Times | News, sports, weather, events in the Northwest
Contact: Services | Seattle Times Newspaper Pot store stays open, judge rules, until church’s suit heard | Local News | The Seattle Times
