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Standing in front of City Hall on Wednesday, nearly a dozen members of the California Cannabis Coalition and residents announced a campaign to overturn the city's ban on marijuana dispensaries. The coalition held a news conference Wednesday saying it would start circulating an initiative and gather the necessary signatures to force a special election next year, said Craig Beresh, president of the coalition. The coalition is made up of patients, patients' caregivers, and medical professionals who strive to protect the public's right to access cannabis legally, he said.
"In Upland, there's no way for any patients to get medical marijuana. There are at least 200 home-bound people who have no way to get it. They are put in the position of following the law, and not getting their medicine, or breaking the law in order to get their medicine," Beresh said. The ballot measure proposes that only three dispensaries be allowed to operate in Upland as well as deliveries.
The city has spent hundreds of thousands of dollars fighting medical marijuana dispensaries, which are prohibited by its zoning code. To force a special election, the proponents, who are Upland residents, need to gather 15 percent of the registered voters in the city, said Stephanie Mendenhall, administrative services director for Upland. In the last election there were 35,000 voters, she said.
The coalition is supporting the Upland residents, and expects to start gathering signatures in the next week. It has 180 days, but Beresh said he is confident they will be able to gather 7,000 signatures in 30 days. "There are so many people that want medical marijuana that it's not going to be a problem collecting the signatures. This is what the people want, and the majority of the voters want — we have not failed yet."
The coalition has helped other jurisdictions circulate an initiative throughout the state, including in Kern County were they gathered 40,000 signatures, Beresh said. In September, Beresh said, Upland residents and members of the coalition approached the city about amending the current city code but "we got a flat refusal."
Mendenhall said she was not aware of any meetings. It is not the first time an initiative has been circulated in an attempt to overturn the city ordinance, she said. In 2012, Aaron Sandusky, then president of G3 Holistics, started a measure but it failed when the group failed to properly publicize it, Mendenhall said.
Once the signatures have been collected the city would have to verify the signatures, paving the way for a special election by March, Mendenhall said. A special election could cost the city $80,000, she said. Randy Welty, a board member of the coalition, said the initiative would address the city's problem of illegal dispensaries.
"This initiative has been put forth to allow three dispensaries in a fairly confined space within the city; that is away from schools, parks and residents. It answers all the distance problems that have been prevalent with a lot of people's concerns," he said. Welty said the measure restricts the dispensaries to the northwest area of the city from Foothill Boulevard to the south, Airport Drive to the east and Monte Vista to the west. Portions of Cable Airport is to the north of the zone.
There are between 12 to 20 dispensaries or delivery services illegally operating in the city, some of which are in residential areas, he said. "We know that it's a black market, and it needs to be regulated so that the city doesn't' have those problems anymore," Welty said. In addition, the new ordinance would help the city financially by creating a new revenue from these business licenses. "We have a city that has financial problems right now and this initiative gives the city almost a quarter of a million a year to help with other things in the city. It gives enough money to at least police this issue," Welty said
News Moderator - The General @ 420 MAGAZINE ®
Source: Dailybulletin.com
Author: Liset Marquez
Contact: Contact Us
Website: Cannabis coalition launches campaign to overturn dispensary bans in Upland
"In Upland, there's no way for any patients to get medical marijuana. There are at least 200 home-bound people who have no way to get it. They are put in the position of following the law, and not getting their medicine, or breaking the law in order to get their medicine," Beresh said. The ballot measure proposes that only three dispensaries be allowed to operate in Upland as well as deliveries.
The city has spent hundreds of thousands of dollars fighting medical marijuana dispensaries, which are prohibited by its zoning code. To force a special election, the proponents, who are Upland residents, need to gather 15 percent of the registered voters in the city, said Stephanie Mendenhall, administrative services director for Upland. In the last election there were 35,000 voters, she said.
The coalition is supporting the Upland residents, and expects to start gathering signatures in the next week. It has 180 days, but Beresh said he is confident they will be able to gather 7,000 signatures in 30 days. "There are so many people that want medical marijuana that it's not going to be a problem collecting the signatures. This is what the people want, and the majority of the voters want — we have not failed yet."
The coalition has helped other jurisdictions circulate an initiative throughout the state, including in Kern County were they gathered 40,000 signatures, Beresh said. In September, Beresh said, Upland residents and members of the coalition approached the city about amending the current city code but "we got a flat refusal."
Mendenhall said she was not aware of any meetings. It is not the first time an initiative has been circulated in an attempt to overturn the city ordinance, she said. In 2012, Aaron Sandusky, then president of G3 Holistics, started a measure but it failed when the group failed to properly publicize it, Mendenhall said.
Once the signatures have been collected the city would have to verify the signatures, paving the way for a special election by March, Mendenhall said. A special election could cost the city $80,000, she said. Randy Welty, a board member of the coalition, said the initiative would address the city's problem of illegal dispensaries.
"This initiative has been put forth to allow three dispensaries in a fairly confined space within the city; that is away from schools, parks and residents. It answers all the distance problems that have been prevalent with a lot of people's concerns," he said. Welty said the measure restricts the dispensaries to the northwest area of the city from Foothill Boulevard to the south, Airport Drive to the east and Monte Vista to the west. Portions of Cable Airport is to the north of the zone.
There are between 12 to 20 dispensaries or delivery services illegally operating in the city, some of which are in residential areas, he said. "We know that it's a black market, and it needs to be regulated so that the city doesn't' have those problems anymore," Welty said. In addition, the new ordinance would help the city financially by creating a new revenue from these business licenses. "We have a city that has financial problems right now and this initiative gives the city almost a quarter of a million a year to help with other things in the city. It gives enough money to at least police this issue," Welty said
News Moderator - The General @ 420 MAGAZINE ®
Source: Dailybulletin.com
Author: Liset Marquez
Contact: Contact Us
Website: Cannabis coalition launches campaign to overturn dispensary bans in Upland
