Jacob Redmond
Well-Known Member
San Diego's first permitted medical marijuana dispensary opened relatively quietly Wednesday morning in an Otay Mesa strip mall near the international border.
There were no long lines or anything else conspicuous, just a few customers excited they can start buying pot from an authorized shop in San Diego for the first time since California voters approved the use of medical marijuana in 1996.
"There's another one around the corner but this one, I guess, is the most legit in San Diego," said Gerard Bennett, who's been a regular customer elsewhere. "It's nice to know that these guys are regulated. With illegal dispensaries, the concern is getting busted right out in front when you're leaving."
Regulated city dispensaries must be nonprofits, allow their products to be tested, meet rigorous security requirements and adhere to strict zoning rules that include being at least 1,000 feet from schools and 100 feet from residential areas.
Supporters of medical marijuana say the regulation of dispensaries will accelerate the closure of an estimated 100 pot shops operating without permission across the county, with essentially no rules, while authorities try to shut them down.
San Diego joins nearly 50 other cities in California that offer a process to legitimize medical marijuana dispensaries, but it is the only city in this county to do so. The county government allowed a dispensary to open last summer in an unincorporated area outside El Cajon.
The city last week gave final approval to two more dispensaries, one in Kearny Mesa and one in San Ysidro. They're expected to open this spring.
A fourth dispensary in the Midway district just east of Point Loma is scheduled to receive final approval from the Planning Commission on Thursday.
The opening of the Otay shop on Wednesday was a major milestone for the city, said David Blair, the owner.
"Patients finally have a place to go for completely safe access," said Blair, an HIV-positive San Diego State business ethics lecturer who smokes pot daily to relieve his symptoms. "We're achieving a longtime goal."
Mike Arlotta, a customer, agreed that it was a big moment. He also expressed confidence the dispensary would be run well, noting it has surveillance cameras, a security guard and a metal detector.
"It seems like with the security they're putting into play, they're definitely doing it the right way," he said.
The dispensary, a 1,400-square-foot suite sandwiched between a car insurance office and a duty free shop, doesn't have any signage indicating what kind of business it is or that marijuana is available.
It simply has the shop's name, "A Green Alternative," written above a long row of glass windows surrounded by frames made of cream-colored, freshly painted wood.
Nearby businesses said they're unsure how the dispensary might affect the strip mall, which is at 2335 Roll Drive near state Route 905.
"We're treating it just like another business so far," said Hector Cisneros, manager of a nearby Subway restaurant. "It's something new for us, so we're not exactly sure how it's going to work out."
News Moderator: Jacob Redmond 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: San Diego's first legal pot shop opens Wednesday | UTSanDiego.com
Author: David Garrick
Contact: local@utsandiego.com
Photo Credit: John Gibbins
Website: San Diego News, Local, California and National News | UTSanDiego.com
There were no long lines or anything else conspicuous, just a few customers excited they can start buying pot from an authorized shop in San Diego for the first time since California voters approved the use of medical marijuana in 1996.
"There's another one around the corner but this one, I guess, is the most legit in San Diego," said Gerard Bennett, who's been a regular customer elsewhere. "It's nice to know that these guys are regulated. With illegal dispensaries, the concern is getting busted right out in front when you're leaving."
Regulated city dispensaries must be nonprofits, allow their products to be tested, meet rigorous security requirements and adhere to strict zoning rules that include being at least 1,000 feet from schools and 100 feet from residential areas.
Supporters of medical marijuana say the regulation of dispensaries will accelerate the closure of an estimated 100 pot shops operating without permission across the county, with essentially no rules, while authorities try to shut them down.
San Diego joins nearly 50 other cities in California that offer a process to legitimize medical marijuana dispensaries, but it is the only city in this county to do so. The county government allowed a dispensary to open last summer in an unincorporated area outside El Cajon.
The city last week gave final approval to two more dispensaries, one in Kearny Mesa and one in San Ysidro. They're expected to open this spring.
A fourth dispensary in the Midway district just east of Point Loma is scheduled to receive final approval from the Planning Commission on Thursday.
The opening of the Otay shop on Wednesday was a major milestone for the city, said David Blair, the owner.
"Patients finally have a place to go for completely safe access," said Blair, an HIV-positive San Diego State business ethics lecturer who smokes pot daily to relieve his symptoms. "We're achieving a longtime goal."
Mike Arlotta, a customer, agreed that it was a big moment. He also expressed confidence the dispensary would be run well, noting it has surveillance cameras, a security guard and a metal detector.
"It seems like with the security they're putting into play, they're definitely doing it the right way," he said.
The dispensary, a 1,400-square-foot suite sandwiched between a car insurance office and a duty free shop, doesn't have any signage indicating what kind of business it is or that marijuana is available.
It simply has the shop's name, "A Green Alternative," written above a long row of glass windows surrounded by frames made of cream-colored, freshly painted wood.
Nearby businesses said they're unsure how the dispensary might affect the strip mall, which is at 2335 Roll Drive near state Route 905.
"We're treating it just like another business so far," said Hector Cisneros, manager of a nearby Subway restaurant. "It's something new for us, so we're not exactly sure how it's going to work out."
News Moderator: Jacob Redmond 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: San Diego's first legal pot shop opens Wednesday | UTSanDiego.com
Author: David Garrick
Contact: local@utsandiego.com
Photo Credit: John Gibbins
Website: San Diego News, Local, California and National News | UTSanDiego.com
