Pubdate: Mon, 17 Feb 2003
Source: Oakland Tribune, The (CA)
Copyright: 2003 MediaNews Group, Inc. and ANG Newspapers
Contact:  http://www.oaklandtribune.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/314
Author: Michelle Meyers

HAYWARD SEES GROWTH IN POT DISPENSARIES

Three Clinics Have Been Operating Quietly, And Two More Have Applied For 
Permits To Open

HAYWARD -- A sprouting hub of medical marijuana dispensaries has some 
people calling the downtown area "Haysterdam," a hybrid of Hayward and 
Amsterdam -- the Dutch city known for its drug tolerance.

Within just a couple of blocks, there are three businesses dispensing 
medical marijuana, and two are proposed for the future.

"Hayward is the first stop for people coming from the Peninsula and Santa 
Clara County," said Phillip Mol, owner of Helping Hands Patients' Center on 
B Street, adding that patients stop in Hayward instead of traveling to 
Oakland for marijuana.

News of the latest proposed dispensary buzzed last week among downtown 
business owners as they received notification from the city about a use 
permit under consideration for Total Hayward Compassion, proposed at a site 
on B Street between Main Street and Mission Boulevard.

Business owners surveyed by the Chamber of Commerce said they opposed the 
dispensary because they did not think it meshed with ongoing efforts to 
upgrade B Street, which is slated for a $3 million facelift beginning this 
month.

"The debate isn't about whether the use of medical marijuana is 
appropriate," said Chamber President Scott Raty. "This type of business is 
very inconsistent with goals for revitalizing downtown."

"We want foot traffic, but not that kind of foot traffic," added Steve 
Rubiolo, whose photography studio is just below Helping Hands. "The 
proposed use is flawed and dangerous. It would not attract shoppers 
downtown. It would encourage questionable activity at all hours of the day 
and night."

Kenny Vargas, who would run Total Hayward Compassion, appears to be the 
first owner to be frank with the city about his business plans, city 
officials said. He proposes a medical clinic on the first and second floors 
of the building, with hemp products also for sale on the first floor. The 
top level would be a residence.

Use permits are required downtown for first-floor medical clinics. Although 
a planning official could rule on the permit, it likely will go before the 
Planning Commission because of its controversial nature.

"I purposely wanted to be upfront about my intentions to help people in 
need," he said. "It would be a great benefit to the community if the city 
embraces it. I plan to see 300 patients a month."

Owners of another proposed new dispensary on Main Street between A and B 
streets, who did not want their names used until plans were more settled, 
said they want to mix a dispensary with a coffee shop, open to the public. 
They have a lease on their building but haven't yet applied for a business 
license.

The existing dispensaries -- Hayward Hempery and Local Patients 
Cooperative, both on Foothill Boulevard near the intersection with B 
Street, and Helping Hands -- have business licenses. But the nature of the 
business listed on their licenses ranges from sales and services to retail 
sales to consultant, with no mention of marijuana.

So the city has no official record of these businesses dispensing medical 
marijuana, which is legal under California law but illegal under federal law.

The legal limbo makes it difficult for the city and police to come up with 
policies addressing the issue.

"We don't get that many complaints," said police Capt. Raul Valdivia. "We 
feel it's probably better to deploy our energy and our resources in other 
directions."

Even if arrests were made for possession of marijuana or related crimes, he 
added, it is not likely that the district attorney would prosecute.

Several dispensary owners said they used to be affiliated with Hayward 
Hempery, which opened downtown more than a decade ago even before the 
passage of Proposition 215, which legalized marijuana for medicinal use in 
California.

Mol, for example, left to open a better model with quality products and 
better prices.

"I'm just trying to do a good thing and help people," he said, adding that 
he's disgusted by black-market prices and people who mix medical marijuana 
operations with hard drugs.

None of the owners said they were concerned about competition, and they 
said the market likely will support the new operations, if they're well-run.
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MAP posted-by: Larry Stevens