Pubdate: Sat, 02 Jan 2016 Source: Long Beach Press-Telegram (CA) Copyright: 2016 Los Angeles Newspaper Group Contact: http://www.presstelegram.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/244 Author: Stefan Borst-Censullo Note: Stefan Borst-Censullo is an adviser to the California Growers Association and a local advocate for the medical cannabis industry. MARIJUANA DELIVERY SERVICE IN LONG BEACH IS MORE DANGEROUS THAN POT STOREFRONTS Despite what Long Beach Councilwoman Suzie Price asserts, her recent campaign to maintain the ban on storefront dispensaries and implement a "delivery-only" approach is a study in inept public policy, irrational taboos and political carelessness. Her current proposal establishes a system that does not adequately address demand, creates far more public safety problems than its proponents claim and guarantees that future license holders will be functionally unable to recoup their investments. Delivery -only is a bad model for a variety of reasons, all of which were explained in detail to Price before she decided to pursue it. To begin, as the Long Beach City Council itself knows, delivery drivers of any profession risk their personal safety when working in this city. The issue was so severe that the city had to require taxis to pick up passengers in some parts of town. By forcing operators to deliver a controlled substance, in exchange for cash, Price has created perfect conditions for armed robberies. From an economic perspective, claims from the Long Beach Police that undoing the ban on storefront retail operation will cost the city more than the revenue it generates are completely baseless. Evidence for the positive economic impact of commercial cannabis have already been seen in a number of different jurisdictions. Furthermore, objective analysts estimate the value of the Los Angeles area cannabis market at around $1 billion. If our city bureaucracy can't find a way to profit off a business with this much available capital, they are truly not trying hard enough. Additionally the police have mischaracterized their current failed strategy for combating the illegal commercial cannabis trade. From a policy perspective the Price proposal will only make it easier for illegal distributors, as it creates a regulatory environment that is impossible for any legitimate business to operate in good faith. Delivery services from both in and outside of Long Beach will have no incentive to seek these licenses from the city. By design, these licenses are guaranteed to be cost-prohibitive on the front end and would subsequently place their owners at a severe competitive disadvantage to rogue operators-who will continue to avoid local control with little to no way to hold them accountable. Advocates for medical cannabis have worked hard to educate the council on the aforementioned economic and legal factors that would negatively impact any delivery-only model. Instead of listening to objective criticisms, Price created an ordinance that makes any future commercial cannabis development strictly conditional on overcoming what would be the most restrictive and over-regulated marketplace in the state. By no measure can the Price proposal be considered a compromise. Rather the proposal functions either as a poison pill designed intentionally to guarantee storefronts would never come to Long Beach. In either case, while the rest of the state and nation move towards the normalization of commercial marijuana, Long Beach ignores the will of its own voters, the tides of history and good common sense. Our state is allowing localities to license a host of activities associated with the cannabis economy, including distribution, logistics and manufacturing. Long Beach had an opportunity to invite these business into our city and create a new facet of local sustainable job creation. Now, because of the fear and distortions that guided a small majority of the council, we will lag behind and potentially lose millions in revenue while we play catch up. - --- MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom