Pubdate: Tue, 01 Jul 2014
Source: Denver Post (CO)
Copyright: 2014 The Associated Press
Contact:  http://www.denverpost.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/122
Author: Gene Johnson, The Associated Press
Page: 12A

BUMPY ROAD FOR MARIJUANA LEGALIZATION IN WASHINGTON

SEATTLE (AP) - Pete O'Neil saw Washington's legalization of marijuana 
in 2012 as a path to retirement, or at least to his kids' college 
tuition. He's paid tens of thousands of dollars of rent on possible 
locations for a pot-shop chain, hired lawyers and picked out 
flooring. But now the nation's second legal recreational marijuana 
industry is about to start without him.

O'Neil struck out in Washington's lottery for coveted pot-shop 
licenses. He has unsuccessfully tried to buy companies that scored a 
lucky number. In frustration, he's turning what would have been his 
Seattle retail store into a medical marijuana dispensary.

"Our company is bleeding money, and I haven't sold a single joint," 
O'Neil says.

As Washington plows toward the legalization of pot, it's finding that 
getting the cannabis market off the ground has been tougher than 
anyone imagined.

Among the frustrated are growers who have been waiting months for 
permission to start raising their bar-coded plants; advocates who 
wish more public health messaging had been done by now; and would-be 
pot vendors like O'Neil who say bad luck, minor oversights on their 
applications or errors by state officials have torpedoed otherwise 
promising efforts.

Washington's Liquor Control Board expects to issue the first 15 to 20 
marijuana retail licenses July 7, months later than first expected, 
but it's not clear how many of those shops are ready. Board staff 
members said last week only one shop in Seattle is prepared for its 
final inspection.

Randy Simmons, the board's legal pot project manager, predicts a 
"bumpy road," with an initial shortage of stores and marijuana alike. 
Many businesses that got lucky in the pot-shop lottery in April have 
since been disqualified, such as by being too close to schools or 
playgrounds. Others haven't finished building or haven't made deals 
to buy pot from licensed growers.

"This is a gold-rush mentality, and everybody wants to get rich," 
Simmons said. "Some people just don't have an idea what they're doing 
- - no clue at all. It slows down the process."

Pot shortages are certain. More than 2,600 people applied last fall 
to grow marijuana, but those applications are being reviewed 
glacially by the board's 18 swamped licensing investigators. Only 
about 80 growers have been approved, and some won't harvest by early 
July. Hundreds of applicants haven't even been assigned an investigator.

Prices could run more than $25 a gram for the heavily taxed pot - 
about twice what the state's unregulated medical dispensaries charge 
- - until more growers are licensed, Simmons says.

There will be no edibles available. People who want to make brownies, 
cookies or other pot-infused treats must have their kitchens 
inspected by the state. Of the two tested so far, one failed - it 
didn't even have a hand-washing sink. The report on the other hasn't 
been completed.

The board has capped the number of retail stores statewide at 334, 
but dozens of jurisdictions have banned them, prompting lawsuits in two cities.

Colorado is bringing in millions of dollars a month while Washington 
struggles to build its industry.

Unlike Washington, Colorado already had a regulated medical system, 
making for a smoother transition when it allowed dispensaries to 
begin selling for recreational use in January.

Washington also has done more work developing marijuana safety standards.

Many industry hopefuls have found Washington's delays maddening. 
Douglas Taylor spent $230,000 on land for his planned outdoor grow. 
The payments run $1,600 a month, and he says the board hasn't even 
started reviewing his application. Meanwhile, he has missed the 
outdoor growing season - a revenue loss of about $500,000, he estimates.

Ed Rhinehart, 58, a retired businessman, counted on being licensed 
for an outdoor grow by April. He hired four workers, spent $22,000 on 
a required fence and dropped $10,000 on surveillance cameras. On 
April 15, he laid everybody off. After months of back-and-forth with 
the board, Rhinehart expects to get his license soon. But he too will 
have missed the outdoor season.

"If I had to do it all over again, I wouldn't have done it," he said.

Many would-be retailers allege missteps by the board.

For example, they point to mixed signals about whether officials 
would allow multiple people to apply for retail licenses using the 
same address.

The board did, and some groups formed numerous corporations to apply 
myriad times - significantly boosting their lottery odds and 
prompting complaints they gamed the system.

Others say they were kicked out of the lottery because inaccurate 
measurements placed them within 1,000 feet of a protected area, 
because board staffers misread their criminal history or because they 
supposedly failed to turn in complete applications.

Simmons said anyone who believes mistakes were made in their removal 
from the lottery should appeal, and 127 people have done so.

But it's unclear what the state will do for them if they succeed.

Despite the bumps, others credit the board for its handling of a 
monumental task. Bob Leeds, who retired from banking and 
social-services work, is a partner at Sea of Green Farms, a licensed 
pot-grower in Seattle.

His team just finished harvesting 40 pounds - some of the first 
marijuana that will be sold legally in Washington.

"It's the most fun thing I've ever done," he says. "I had never seen 
a marijuana plant until a year and a half ago. Now I own 5,000 of them."
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom