Jim Finnel
Fallen Cannabis Warrior & Ex News Moderator
Jhonrico Carrnshimba stood outside a metal door in unincorporated Redwood City on Wednesday holding the 13-page application he needs to fill out to get a license for his medical marijuana cooperative.
On the other side of the door is the Universal Healthcare Cooperative Corp., which has been distributing medical marijuana to patients since Carrnshimba launched it in February.
San Mateo County officials want to know all about the operation — the fees it charges, how it prevents members from sharing medical pot with others, the amount of marijuana each member gets.
Those are among the 59 questions included in the county's pot club licensing application, which officials released this week to anyone interested in running a collective in unincorporated areas. In the last year, three collectives have opened up in the North Fair Oaks neighborhood, including Carrnshimba's.
"I think it's good they're actually completing it," Carrnshimba said of the application, which has been in the works for months. "We've been prepared for this."
It marks the county's first attempt to implement an ordinance passed in April by county supervisors with the aim of preventing illegal activity while still allowing distribution of medical cannabis, legalized in 1996 by Proposition 215.
Applicants must first comply with the ordinance, which requires collectives to be located at least 1,000 feet from schools and youth centers, prohibits them from employing felons and requires them to have an alarm system and bars on windows, among other provisions.
They then have to answer a series of questions about how the collective operates, ranging from its tax status to the tabulation of expenses.
The ordinance also bans edible marijuana products, a restriction Carrnshimba and others had objected to. Carrnshimba has since removed edibles from his cooperative, but hopes to negotiate with the county to bring them back.
A number of questions are intended to help the county licensing board — which ultimately will approve or deny the applications — judge whether an applicant is planning to run a true collective.
The county says a collective should operate as a "closed circuit" of marijuana cultivation and consumption, with most members also contributing labor or other resources in addition to giving the collective cash for the marijuana.
"Membership is key, because otherwise, if you are not a legitimate member, then it's still illegal," said County Counsel Mike Murphy. "This is probably the only type of enterprise that we license that, on its face, would be illegal but for the status of the people that are involved."
Carrnshimba says members of his collective, who number between 170 and 200, attend educational workshops and can volunteer to work at the collective.
"It's not about (being) a store" for marijuana, Carrnshimba said. "It is more so about the caring, the healing, the members meetings, the group classes."
The county also wants to know the names and addresses of anyone who cultivates, transports, prepares, packages or administers marijuana for the collective, according to the application.
Representatives for two other collectives in the unincorporated Redwood City area — Blue Heaven and the California Patients Cooperative — were not available for comment when a reporter visited Wednesday afternoon.
While the county ordinance has been in effect since July 1, the county plans to give the collectives until mid-September to submit applications. After that, clubs that operate without a license could be shut down.
News Hawk: User: 420 MAGAZINE ® - Medical Marijuana Publication & Social Networking
Source: San Jose Mercury News
Author: Shaun Bishop
Copyright: 2009 San Jose Mercury News
Contact: Help - San Jose Mercury News
Website: San Mateo County releases applications for medical pot collectives – The Mercury News
On the other side of the door is the Universal Healthcare Cooperative Corp., which has been distributing medical marijuana to patients since Carrnshimba launched it in February.
San Mateo County officials want to know all about the operation — the fees it charges, how it prevents members from sharing medical pot with others, the amount of marijuana each member gets.
Those are among the 59 questions included in the county's pot club licensing application, which officials released this week to anyone interested in running a collective in unincorporated areas. In the last year, three collectives have opened up in the North Fair Oaks neighborhood, including Carrnshimba's.
"I think it's good they're actually completing it," Carrnshimba said of the application, which has been in the works for months. "We've been prepared for this."
It marks the county's first attempt to implement an ordinance passed in April by county supervisors with the aim of preventing illegal activity while still allowing distribution of medical cannabis, legalized in 1996 by Proposition 215.
Applicants must first comply with the ordinance, which requires collectives to be located at least 1,000 feet from schools and youth centers, prohibits them from employing felons and requires them to have an alarm system and bars on windows, among other provisions.
They then have to answer a series of questions about how the collective operates, ranging from its tax status to the tabulation of expenses.
The ordinance also bans edible marijuana products, a restriction Carrnshimba and others had objected to. Carrnshimba has since removed edibles from his cooperative, but hopes to negotiate with the county to bring them back.
A number of questions are intended to help the county licensing board — which ultimately will approve or deny the applications — judge whether an applicant is planning to run a true collective.
The county says a collective should operate as a "closed circuit" of marijuana cultivation and consumption, with most members also contributing labor or other resources in addition to giving the collective cash for the marijuana.
"Membership is key, because otherwise, if you are not a legitimate member, then it's still illegal," said County Counsel Mike Murphy. "This is probably the only type of enterprise that we license that, on its face, would be illegal but for the status of the people that are involved."
Carrnshimba says members of his collective, who number between 170 and 200, attend educational workshops and can volunteer to work at the collective.
"It's not about (being) a store" for marijuana, Carrnshimba said. "It is more so about the caring, the healing, the members meetings, the group classes."
The county also wants to know the names and addresses of anyone who cultivates, transports, prepares, packages or administers marijuana for the collective, according to the application.
Representatives for two other collectives in the unincorporated Redwood City area — Blue Heaven and the California Patients Cooperative — were not available for comment when a reporter visited Wednesday afternoon.
While the county ordinance has been in effect since July 1, the county plans to give the collectives until mid-September to submit applications. After that, clubs that operate without a license could be shut down.
News Hawk: User: 420 MAGAZINE ® - Medical Marijuana Publication & Social Networking
Source: San Jose Mercury News
Author: Shaun Bishop
Copyright: 2009 San Jose Mercury News
Contact: Help - San Jose Mercury News
Website: San Mateo County releases applications for medical pot collectives – The Mercury News
