Pubdate: Fri, 18 Mar 2005
Source: Press Democrat, The (Santa Rosa, CA)
Contact:  2005 The Press Democrat
Website: http://www.pressdemo.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/348
Author: Paul Payne, The Press Democrat
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/mmj.htm (Cannabis - Medicinal)

SR CONSIDERS REGULATING POT CLUBS

3 Sites Where Marijuana Sold Were Off Council's 'Radar Screen' Until
Neighbors Complained

Santa Rosa elected officials said they were surprised to learn that
three medical marijuana clubs are operating within the city - one of
them across the street from City Hall - and pledged quick action on
laws to regulate them.

City Councilman Bob Blanchard said the proliferation came to his
attention recently when neighbors of a Sonoma Avenue club complained
about traffic, public pot smoking and unruly customer behavior.

Blanchard said he paid a visit to Resource Green Caregivers and
Patient Group. To his dismay, marijuana sales were in full swing at
the 10-month-old club, located in a cinder-block building adjacent to
Juilliard Park.

"That was news to me," Blanchard said. "I thought, 'How did this
happen?'"

Mayor Jane Bender also expressed shock.

"It's been off the radar screen for a while," Bender said. "I think
three clubs is too many."

They said the council will consider rules to control where and when
clubs may open, how many can operate in the city and the conduct
expected of customers.

Over the next 60 days, the city plans to see how other communities are
dealing with the issue.

On Thursday, officers canvassed the neighborhood near Resource Green,
asking residents for feedback about the club, said Rayburn Killion, an
outspoken critic who lives a few doors away.

California voters approved the medical use of marijuana in 1996. The
initiative has given rise to pot clubs around the state. Federal drug
agents have closed some clubs but many jurisdictions are looking for
ways to regulate them.

Santa Rosa will seek help from Attorney General Bill Lockyer with the
interpretation of legislation that some say has caused a political
quagmire.

While the initiative didn't address pot sales and other laws make them
illegal, juries in Sonoma County have been reluctant to convict people
in cases where medical use was offered as a defense.

District Attorney Stephen Passalacqua has promised not to prosecute
people who have valid physician recommendations, and police are taking
a "hands-off approach."

"We've tried to be very neutral," Santa Rosa Police Lt. Jerry Briggs
said. "We know the political realities."

Some club operators and customers said they would welcome local
regulations as long as they don't add to costs or limit access.

John Sugg, owner of Caregiver Compassion Center on Montgomery Drive,
said an ordinance would help bring medical marijuana into the
mainstream and protect suppliers from the federal government, which
still considers marijuana a controlled substance.

"I'm in favor of regulations as long as they keep them reasonable,"
said Sugg, who opened his center in August. "If we have to pay fees,
it will just be a cost of doing business."

The owners of another Santa Rosa club, North Bay Collective, which
opened last year on West Steele Lane, agreed that city regulations are
appropriate.

A man who identified himself as the co-founder said the club screens
its customers closely and hasn't had any problems with neighbors.

"We do all the common-sense things anyway," said the man, who
identified himself only as Marco. "It's just like any other place of
business."

Resource Green owner Ken Haus didn't comment on potential city
regulations, but has said he increased security at the club to deal
with complaints from neighbors.

A Resource Green customer who requested anonymity said rules were
needed to prevent people from smoking pot outside clubs or re-selling
it to people without prescriptions.

Crowds of young people at Resource Green caused her to curtail visits,
she said.

"This place has gotten out of control," she said. "It's scary some of
the people you see there."

Such concerns have led to municipal ordinances elsewhere, regulating
aspects of marijuana clubs. In Oakland, for instance, city officials
set a limit of three clubs, Briggs said.

Willits is considering a pot club ordinance and Ukiah is looking at
rules to regulate growers, though not clubs.

The state will begin issuing identification cards to medical marijuana
users in Sonoma, Mendocino and Marin counties in the summer, part of a
pilot program in 10 counties designed to protect certified users from
arrest and pot seizures.

Councilman Blanchard said Santa Rosa will enter the debate
cautiously.

The city hopes to strike a balance between protecting pot club
neighbors and the rights of people who are prescribed the drug, he
said.

"The problem has been highlighted," Blanchard said. "Now we'll take
care of it."
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MAP posted-by: Richard Lake