Pubdate: Thu, 23 May 2013
Source: San Bernardino Sun (CA)
Copyright: 2013 Los Angeles Newspaper Group
Contact:  http://www.sbsun.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1417

MEDICAL MARIJUANA DISPENSARIES COULD BE AN OPPORTUNITY

In their haste to wave their white hats as they drive medical
marijuana dispensaries out of town, San Bernardino authorities are
missing an opportunity.

The city has been busy raiding and ordering closures of the more than
30 med-pot shops in town since the state Supreme Court ruled May 6 to
uphold local prohibitions on dispensaries. Cities and counties
statewide have been waiting years for clarity on whether they can ban
these businesses that proliferated following voter approval of
Proposition 215, which OK'd marijuana for personal medicinal use.

Now, with the state court's blessing, authorities are well within
their rights to enforce San Bernardino's zoning ordinance outlawing
med-pot shops - an ordinance that is a statement, really, about the
kinds of businesses and clientele officials hope to attract to San
Bernardino's struggling economic corridors.

In a town starved for tax revenue - a city, keep in mind, that has
made steep cuts in services and filed for municipal bankruptcy -
officials would do well to pause and consider whether eradicating all
of the city's 33 med-pot shops is truly the right call for San Bernardino.

Control over these shops is necessary, of course. The city has one of
the highest crime rates regionally, so pushing for any enterprise that
could increase crime would be irresponsible.

But while authorities consider the ban on dispensaries the best way to
clamp down on potential crime, closing every shop and pushing medical
marijuana sales underground could in fact increase crime.

There must be some acceptance, too, of the fact that California voters
have given adults the right to use marijuana for medicinal purposes.
Med-pot shops, if regulated properly, stand to be the safest means for
meeting the needs of medical marijuana users.

Now, San Bernardino does have more than its share of such
establishments: Does a city of 200,000 really need 33 medical
marijuana dispensaries? Probably not. And San Bernardino is not alone
in wishing to keep med-pot shops out of town. More than 180 cities and
counties statewide have adopted bans on dispensaries. Many, like San
Bernardino, were slapping fines against shops while awaiting a green
light from the Supreme Court to take more aggressive action.

But there are other cities - Diamond Bar and Needles, for example -
that show it's possible to balance their need to regulate a business
that officials fear could attract trouble with the rights of medical
marijuana users.

By regulating and taxing these businesses, theses cities have tapped
into a revenue stream other communities have turned off. Again, 33
med-pot shops in one city is overkill. But has anyone at City Hall
determined whether it might make financial sense in this bankrupt town
to regulate and tax a handful of such stores?

There's no need to worry about dispensaries being given carte blanche
in San Bernardino, when you consider the leverage the Supreme Court
has given it and other cities to hold dispensaries accountable: Follow
the rules, or get out of town.
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