Pubdate: Thu, 31 Dec 2009
Source: Summit Daily News (CO)
Copyright: 2009 Summit Daily News
Contact: http://apps.summitdaily.com/forms/letter/index.php
Website: http://www.summitdaily.com/home.php
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/587
Author: Sarah Mausolf
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/mmj.htm (Cannabis - Medicinal)

VAIL VALLEY POT SHOPS SURVIVING

Five Medical Marijuana Dispensaries Are Currently  Operating In The
Vail Valley, Industry Insiders Say

VAIL VALLEY, Colorado -- They sell pot brownies and  glass smoking
devices. They keep marijuana plants under  lights. They court skiers
with busted knees and locals  with multiple sclerosis in Colorado's
Vail Valley.

In all, five medical marijuana dispensaries are  currently operating
in the Vail Valley, industry  insiders say.

And applications for two more dispensaries will come  before the Eagle
town planning commission Jan. 5.

The question on many people's minds: will the pot shop  trend take
root or go up in smoke?

When medical marijuana shops started to appear here  this past summer,
local towns took stands on them.  Vail, Minturn, Avon and Gypsum do
not allow  dispensaries, citing federal laws forbidding them.  Eagle
allows dispensaries as a special use, but the  shops have to get a
medical marijuana permit, similar  to a liquor license.

With so many towns banning dispensaries, unincorporated  Eagle County
has become the popular spot for pot.  Eagle-Vail and Edwards are home
to the existing  dispensaries. State law prevents Eagle County from
regulating medical marijuana shops, county attorney  Bryan Treu has
said. County officials passed temporary  zoning laws limiting where
the dispensaries can  operate.

After existing on the fringes of the law for years,  medical marijuana
sellers are trying to prove that  they're here for a legitimate cause:
to help patients.

Scott Ziegler, the owner of Holistic Healthcare  Dispensary in
Edwards, said medical marijuana helps  with his Parkinson's disease.
He wants to educate  people about the drug's benefits.

"We've had some people say that's really helped with  the pain," he
said. "I had one lady who was addicted to  Oxcycodone. I've gotten her
completely off of it. She  said I turned her whole life around."

With heated sidewalks and a wheelchair lift, his  dispensary caters to
the handicapped.

"Out of the 90 patients we have right now, over 80  percent are over
the age of 50," he said. "We don't  sell to the people that are
wanting to use it just to  get high."

One point of frustration for Ziegler is that the state  does not
inspect the dispensaries, even as the stores  continue to
proliferate.

"Right now, with the way the economy is, everybody is  trying to get
their foot in the door, just because so  many people don't have an
income any more," he said. "I  think it's going to be kind of like the
wild, wild west  until they have somebody from the state of Colorado
start monitoring them."

Here's a look at dispensaries in the Vail Valley:

- - Herbal Elements, Eagle-Vail When opened: end of
August

Where: 51 Eagle Road (at Highway 6 and Eagle Road)

Phone: 970-949-7008

Sells: Fifteen to 18 strains of medical marijuana,  sweets (such as 
cookies) and tea made with medical  marijuana

Details: Specializes in "clones," medical marijuana  plants customers can 
take home

Atmosphere: Lobby looks like a bit like a medical  office, with some 
definite exceptions: Vintage record  covers, local artwork and a large 
poster featuring  marijuana leafs with the store's logo hang on the  walls. 
One room houses marijuana.

- - Rocky Mountain High Pain Management and Wellness  Center, Edwards
When opened: Sept. 25

Where: 0105 Edwards Village Blvd., unit C-104 (between  Prestige cleaners 
and Bottle & Cork)

Phone: 970-926-4408

Sells: Twenty to 30 strains of medical marijuana, baked  goods made with 
medical marijuana (such as brownies,  lemon bars), glassware, massage, 
acupuncture

Details: In-house doctor, portion of the profits  benefit children with cancer

Atmosphere: An antique wooden desk and large flatscreen  TV decorate the 
lobby. The back room boasts a large  glass cases filled with fancy smoking 
devices.

- - Tree Line Premier Dispensary, Eagle-Vail When opened:
mid-September

Where: 40801 Highway 6, Suite 215 (above Paddy's Sport  Bar and Grill)

Phone: 970-949-1887

Sells: 18 strains of medical marijuana, candies, baked  goods made with 
medical marijuana (such as ginger  snaps)

Details: Plans to develop healthy, savory foods made  with medical marijuana

Atmosphere: Lounge features an L-shaped couch and  leather armchair, 
occasionally with reggae music  playing in the background. Vintage record 
covers hang  on the wall of the bud tender's office.

- - Holistic Healthcare Dispensary, Edwards When opened:  About two
months ago

Where: In the former Eagle County Sheriff's Office  substation in the 
Edwards Plaza (below Asian Spice  Bistro)

Phone: 970-569-4202

Sells: About five strains of medical marijuana, baked  goods made with 
medical marijuana (banana bread,  brownies), tinctures

Details: Lounge with wifi

Atmosphere: With covered parking, heated sidewalks and  a lift to carry 
wheelchairs up the stairs to the  bathroom, the dispensary caters to the 
handicapped. The  lobby features a large L-shaped couch and TV. Jars 
with  free snacks greet customers at the entrance.

- - New Hope Wellness Center, Edwards When opened: August

Where: 210 Edwards Village Blvd, B-110 (Edwards  commercial park)

Phone: 970-569-3701

Sells: Twenty strains of medical marijuana, baked good  made with medical 
marijuana (such as Chex mix, zucchini  loaf), plans to develop quiche and 
ice cream made with  marijuana.

Details: Dispensary helps customers find other  services, like grocery 
delivery or lawn care, at  discount prices.

Atmosphere: Colorful local art hangs in the lobby.  Glass cases house baked 
goods and glass bowls. Lights  hover over medical marijuana "clones." 
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MAP posted-by: Jo-D