Pubdate: Thu, 03 Dec 2009 Source: Santa Ynez Valley Journal (CA) Copyright: 2009 Santa Ynez Valley Journal Contact: http://www.santaynezvalleyjournal.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/4847 Author: Jeremy Foster Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/mmj.htm (Cannabis - Medicinal) MEETING ON MARIJUANA PROMPTS CALL TO ACTION Dozens of people attending a town hall meeting in Los Olivos Tuesday night agreed that something needed to be done to prevent marijuana dispensaries from setting up shop in the Valley. The meeting, hosted by Preservation of Los Olivos, came after the group learned that two buildings in the Valley and one in Orcutt almost became home to such dispensaries. The plans reportedly fell through after neighboring tenants objected. Next week, the Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors, at the request of supervisors Janet Wolf and Joni Gray, will consider a moratorium or an outright ban on medical marijuana dispensaries. The majority of those who attended agreed the county should establish a moratorium on new dispensary applications. Solvang, Buellton and several other cities in the county have moratoriums on dispensaries, but unincorporated areas have no such hurdles for those seeking to open the facilities as long as they are established in the retail zones. "I see this as a vacuum in the Valley," said POLO President Kathy Cleary, who moderated the meeting. "The idea that people to the north are going to come to the Valley to get their marijuana is troubling." Many of the people attended the meeting to listen to the PowerPoint presentation and find out what they could do to address their concerns to public officials. The presentation touched on the increase of dispensaries in Santa Barbara, which is attempting to tighten current regulations on medical marijuana dispensaries. Among other things, the presentation noted that 52 percent of those who visit dispensaries are under the age of 30. It also highlighted several crime reports from several cities and counties where such dispensaries are rife. In Los Angeles, the wave of dispensaries has coincided with a 200 percent increase in robberies; a 52 percent increase in burglaries; a 57 percent increase in aggravated assaults; and a 130 percent increase in auto burglaries near "cannabis clubs." Attendees also got an overview of federal and state law. The former classifies marijuana as an illegal narcotic, but the latter allows seriously ill Californians the right to obtain and use marijuana for medicinal purposes when such use is recommended by a physician. Huge concerns centered on lax regulation that some say invites crime and give young people easier access to the drug. Mary Conway, coordinator for the Valley Coalition to Promote Drug Free Youth, gave a presentation that cited research about the harm marijuana causes to a developing brain. "The scary thing is, kids are telling us that it's not hard to get a hold of medicinal marijuana," Conway told the Journal. Rolf Richter, a social studies teacher at Santa Ynez Valley Union High School, said a police officer told him that students are going to Santa Barbara-area dispensaries during their lunch hours. "I've never noticed such a high rate of absentees during lunch as I have this year," Richter said. "More students are coming in late. I suspect they've been out smoking a lot of the time." Solvang resident Fernando Tovalin said dispensaries encourage marijuana use and crime. "As a father and a member of the community, the onus is not on us to prove that it's bad for the community," he said. "It's those who want to bring it here who have to prove that it's more beneficial than harmful." Sharon Byrne, a downtown Santa Barbara resident, said the first time she heard about dispensaries was when an "armed extortion went down around the corner of my house." "What city that size needs 22 dispensaries?" she asked. "We only have 11 Starbucks. How many sick people could we possibly have?" John Baker of Buellton said if marijuana is a beneficial drug, it should be sold at pharmacies. "It's like what's happening with Michael Jackson," Baker said. "His doctor is being held responsible for the drugs he prescribed. If doctors know they're going to be held accountable, and if it's truly an assistance to a patient, then do it through the pharmacies." Some public officials and would-be politicians were on hand to express their concerns. "I'm very concerned about what I see in Santa Barbra with the proliferation of dispensaries," said Susan Jordan, who is running for the 35th District state Assembly seat in 2010. "I have great faith that the supervisors will put significant restrictions in before this becomes a county-wide problem." Solvang Mayor Jim Richardson said the presentation reinforced his belief that his city did the right thing to ban dispensaries years back. "I believe it leads too much to the possibility of crime and loitering and all the bad things that happen, if dispensaries are put in the neighborhood," he said. But not everyone agreed that a ban was the answer. Laura Lord, a researcher at USC, left the meeting disappointed. She thought the presentations showed only one point of view and used too many scare tactics. "I find it ironic that today is World AIDS Day, and AIDS was the reason that proposition 215 was passed," she lamented. "And we're here at a meeting where we're not talking about compassion or the issue at all. We're just fear-mongering about all the horrible things that could happen. We weren't allowed to talk about the positive impact and the medical value of cannabis." She said the type of regulations of dispensaries was key, and said California areas such as Sebastopol, Oakland and North Hollywood allow the facilities, yet don't have the problems running rampant in Los Angeles, where she works. "If you set the regulations properly, they function well and you don't have these problems." - --- MAP posted-by: Jo-D