Jacob Bell
New Member
BARSTOW-- After two years of indecision, the City Council voted 3-2 to ban medical marijuana dispensaries.
The ordinance prohibits medical marijuana dispensaries but protects patients who use or grow the drug under a doctor recommendation.
Mayor Joe Gomez and Councilman Willie Hailey opposed moving the ordinance forward at the last City Council meeting and again opposed the ordinance Monday night. The two moved to extend the moratorium on dispensaries, but the original action to ban them entirely received enough votes to pass.
The city had passed two moratoriums on dispensaries in 2010 and the final, year-long moratorium ended this month. City Planner Mike Massamini had introduced an urgency ordinance at the Planning Commission in July based on a June Department of Justice memo that said the federal government will not protect those who facilitate the distribution of medical marijuana, regardless of state laws.
The California's Compassionate Use Act protects medical marijuana use and cultivation with a physician's recommendation and proper identification. But Massamini has said the law doesn't protect distributors and that is in the best interest of the city to prohibit distribution based on the DOJ's memo.
Hailey said if California voters decided to legalize medical marijuana then "I don't think any council has the right to change that."
Gomez said he could support a dispensary in Barstow if it were charged the highest possible tax by the city and located at the outlet malls, away from schools and homes. Finance Director Cindy Prothro said Tuesday that the city could vote on a business tax on a dispensary to generate more revenue.
"With all the people that travel through Barstow, I think the city could make some money off the sales tax," Gomez said.
The other council members made no comment before two people spoke in favor of the ban and four spoke in opposition to the ban.
Kasey Roberts, a resident with a medical marijuana recommendation for nausea and pain, said the city should at least give one dispensary an opportunity to open. Roberts said in an interview that he and others want to open a dispensary in the area.
"Open dispensaries, tax the crap out of it, get as much revenue as you can out of it," he said. "We won't disappoint you. We've been fighting for this."
Resident Robert Haroldson said the decision shouldn't be based on potential revenue.
"Money seems to be the route of all our decisions," he said, adding that if a dispensary comes to Barstow, "lawlessness is brought in."
The ordinance will go into effect 30 days from the vote.
News Hawk- Jacob Ebel 420 MAGAZINE
Source: desertdispatch.com
Author: Sara Mitchell
Contact: Contact Us
Copyright: Freedom Communications, Inc.
Website: Split council bans medical marijuana shops
The ordinance prohibits medical marijuana dispensaries but protects patients who use or grow the drug under a doctor recommendation.
Mayor Joe Gomez and Councilman Willie Hailey opposed moving the ordinance forward at the last City Council meeting and again opposed the ordinance Monday night. The two moved to extend the moratorium on dispensaries, but the original action to ban them entirely received enough votes to pass.
The city had passed two moratoriums on dispensaries in 2010 and the final, year-long moratorium ended this month. City Planner Mike Massamini had introduced an urgency ordinance at the Planning Commission in July based on a June Department of Justice memo that said the federal government will not protect those who facilitate the distribution of medical marijuana, regardless of state laws.
The California's Compassionate Use Act protects medical marijuana use and cultivation with a physician's recommendation and proper identification. But Massamini has said the law doesn't protect distributors and that is in the best interest of the city to prohibit distribution based on the DOJ's memo.
Hailey said if California voters decided to legalize medical marijuana then "I don't think any council has the right to change that."
Gomez said he could support a dispensary in Barstow if it were charged the highest possible tax by the city and located at the outlet malls, away from schools and homes. Finance Director Cindy Prothro said Tuesday that the city could vote on a business tax on a dispensary to generate more revenue.
"With all the people that travel through Barstow, I think the city could make some money off the sales tax," Gomez said.
The other council members made no comment before two people spoke in favor of the ban and four spoke in opposition to the ban.
Kasey Roberts, a resident with a medical marijuana recommendation for nausea and pain, said the city should at least give one dispensary an opportunity to open. Roberts said in an interview that he and others want to open a dispensary in the area.
"Open dispensaries, tax the crap out of it, get as much revenue as you can out of it," he said. "We won't disappoint you. We've been fighting for this."
Resident Robert Haroldson said the decision shouldn't be based on potential revenue.
"Money seems to be the route of all our decisions," he said, adding that if a dispensary comes to Barstow, "lawlessness is brought in."
The ordinance will go into effect 30 days from the vote.
News Hawk- Jacob Ebel 420 MAGAZINE
Source: desertdispatch.com
Author: Sara Mitchell
Contact: Contact Us
Copyright: Freedom Communications, Inc.
Website: Split council bans medical marijuana shops
