Pubdate: Thu, 23 Apr 2015
Source: North Coast Journal (Arcata, CA)
Column: The Week in Weed
Copyright: 2015 North Coast Journal
Contact:  http://www.northcoastjournal.com
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/2833
Author: Grant Scott-Goforth

PARTY ON

This is lame," murmured one of Arcata's few hardcore stoners around 
4:23 p.m. A couple of young men had stepped off the concrete slab at 
Redwood Park, the small piece of public property that the Humboldt 
Center for Constitutional Rights had wrested from the control of a 
zealous city staff over the course of the last few months (see "Save 
the Date," April 2).

Around 100 people mingled at the park on the chilly, foggy afternoon. 
A disparate cross-section of Arcata: sporty young male stoners, 
restless and edgy traveler types, college professors, attorneys and 
media - lots of media. But bloggers, students and professional 
reporters weren't the only ones collecting images. Organizers 
reported that eager police officers - around 10 of them at one point 
- - avidly recorded HumRights' gathering. By 4 p.m., much of the 
weed-enthusiast crowd had dissipated into the Community Forest. Most 
of the cops disappeared, too. A couple of them could be seen 
approaching groups, chatting briefly and returning to their 
arms-crossed outposts.

Arcata Police Chief Tom Chapman said nine people were cited for 
smoking in the park. "Generally speaking," Chapman wrote in an email, 
"yesterday was similar to the past several '420 Days' in terms of 
activity." No one was arrested.

Jim Gray, of McKinleyville, promoted his homemade board game at the 
event, saying he was more there to network than to sell copies.

HumRights director Jeffrey Schwartz said he would've liked to have 
more people show up to the event, but he seemed content to bask in 
the glow of city approval.

When the minute struck, a couple of hoots and hollers emanated from 
corners of the park. Former Arcata city councilman and HumRights 
board member Dave Meserve took a moment to announce to the small 
crowd, "It is 4:20, so if you're going to indulge, please step onto 
the grass." This, apparently, was to comply with HumRights' promise 
that no one would smoke at its event.

A haunting, charcoal-streaked, Juggalo-esque woman twirled around the 
garbage cans. Young Humboldt State University students scooped hot 
dogs and apple pie onto plates. A frazzled, sun-beaten, 
Army-coat-sporting man bounced from conversation to conversation, 
warning of pirates and betrayers. Loco Coco, a clown visiting from 
Los Angeles, said he expected an enormous joint to be passed around, 
but he was happy with the turnout and appeared to have found ample doobage.

A few people sparked up. But far more smoke emanated from the 
barbecue where HumRights volunteers turned hot dogs, feeding a small, 
consistent contingent of hungry 20-somethings.

The price of store-bought weed in Washington has plummeted by more 
than half since legalization struck last year.

The state liquor control board reported that the average price for a 
gram of legal weed is around $12, down from $30 last summer when 
there were concerns of a marijuana shortage. Those fears quickly 
turned to worries of marijuana oversaturation, according to a Seattle 
Times report.

Current prices in Washington seem to reflect typical Humboldt 
dispensary prices, according to a quick Journal survey.

An upscale East Bay retirement community is home to a growing 
population of marijuana users. The Rossmoor senior citizen community 
boasts a medical marijuana club enrollment of 250 members according 
to a recent San Francisco Chronicle article, perhaps not surprising, 
given a Pew Research report that shows a 300-percent increase in 
support for legalization among seniors since the mid-1980s.

Rossmoor isn't the only golf-and-marijuana-friendly retirement 
community. According to the Chronicle, residents of an Orange County 
senior village "have established a relationship with a Humboldt 
County grower and created a distribution network in the community 
that has the administration's blessing."
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom