Robert Celt
New Member
The El Cajon City Council has sent a strong message that marijuana in any form is not welcome in the city.
The council on Jan. 12 unanimously voted to reaffirm its stance against the drug and renewed a commitment to go after marijuana dispensaries that operate illegally in the city.
"This city is on the cutting edge protecting those who need the most protection – children," City Councilman Gary Kendrick said. "These people profit from the suffering of others. These marijuana dispensaries are targeting our children. We have to protect the children from drugs that can cause great, great damage to them."
Kendrick said the the City Council for the last 15 years has been dedicated to making El Cajon a family-friendly place, "and marijuana is not family friendly, and it doesn't create a safe city."
Pot shops are not allowed within city limits, although several operate legally within unincorporated parts of El Cajon on county land.
City Attorney Morgan Foley said that city staff members are aware of at least six dispensaries that are open within the El Cajon city limits. The city is going after the dispensaries with $100-per-day fines and court orders demanding they shut down.
The council defined and clarified the city's existing position prohibiting marijuana dispensaries as written in the the city's Municipal Code. The code now specifically addresses and prohibits the cultivation, storage, manufacturing, mobile dispensaries and deliveries of medical marijuana in El Cajon.
The City Council said it wanted to lay out its stance in response to the law signed in October by California Gov. Jerry Brown. The Medical Marijuana Regulations and Safety Act is a state licensing and regulatory framework for medical marijuana.
The law took effect Jan. 1. It includes a provision that declares that on March 1, the state will have sole authority over the medical marijuana industry in California. However, the act says state law will not supersede local ordinances that have been passed by March 1.
Three speakers who said they are graduates of the East County Transitional Living Center, a sober living facility that helps those with drug and alcohol addiction and emotional issues, shared stories about their fall into addiction and their recovery. Each said they started out smoking marijuana and advanced to more serious drugs until they decided to get clean.
Terrie Best, San Diego Chapter Chair of Americans For Safe Access, a group that supports the use of medical marijuana, said that "the gateway theory has been debunked several times over," and studies show medical cannabis is far safer than opiates.
Dana Stevens of Communities Against Substance Abuse told the council that she knew of no public health organizations that endorse using marijuana to treat diseases. She did agree that pot "will take away the pain because you're high, but that has nothing to do with illness."
Grossmont Union High School District Trustee Gary Woods told the council that "every board member, administrator, teacher, counselor and police officer (working in the district) is deeply concerned with the growing use of marijuana on high school campuses that is so easy for kids to access."
Woods said he was concerned that marijuana was becoming "big tobacco, using colorfully packaged cookies, candy, brownies and soda to get kids addicted so they have customers for life."
In 2010, El Cajon banned medical marijuana dispensaries. But until Tuesday's vote, there were no regulations prohibiting marijuana cultivation, the distribution of marijuana by mobile marijuana dispensaries and other marijuana delivery services, the manufacturing of marijuana products, or marijuana storage.
The El Cajon City Council has long been opposed to the legalization of marijuana citing public health concerns, safety of youth and not being in line with the city's economic development goals.
News Moderator: Robert Celt 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: California: El Cajon Not Interested In Marijuana
Author: Karen Pearlman
Contact: The San Diego Union-Tribune
Photo Credit: None found
Website: The San Diego Union-Tribune
The council on Jan. 12 unanimously voted to reaffirm its stance against the drug and renewed a commitment to go after marijuana dispensaries that operate illegally in the city.
"This city is on the cutting edge protecting those who need the most protection – children," City Councilman Gary Kendrick said. "These people profit from the suffering of others. These marijuana dispensaries are targeting our children. We have to protect the children from drugs that can cause great, great damage to them."
Kendrick said the the City Council for the last 15 years has been dedicated to making El Cajon a family-friendly place, "and marijuana is not family friendly, and it doesn't create a safe city."
Pot shops are not allowed within city limits, although several operate legally within unincorporated parts of El Cajon on county land.
City Attorney Morgan Foley said that city staff members are aware of at least six dispensaries that are open within the El Cajon city limits. The city is going after the dispensaries with $100-per-day fines and court orders demanding they shut down.
The council defined and clarified the city's existing position prohibiting marijuana dispensaries as written in the the city's Municipal Code. The code now specifically addresses and prohibits the cultivation, storage, manufacturing, mobile dispensaries and deliveries of medical marijuana in El Cajon.
The City Council said it wanted to lay out its stance in response to the law signed in October by California Gov. Jerry Brown. The Medical Marijuana Regulations and Safety Act is a state licensing and regulatory framework for medical marijuana.
The law took effect Jan. 1. It includes a provision that declares that on March 1, the state will have sole authority over the medical marijuana industry in California. However, the act says state law will not supersede local ordinances that have been passed by March 1.
Three speakers who said they are graduates of the East County Transitional Living Center, a sober living facility that helps those with drug and alcohol addiction and emotional issues, shared stories about their fall into addiction and their recovery. Each said they started out smoking marijuana and advanced to more serious drugs until they decided to get clean.
Terrie Best, San Diego Chapter Chair of Americans For Safe Access, a group that supports the use of medical marijuana, said that "the gateway theory has been debunked several times over," and studies show medical cannabis is far safer than opiates.
Dana Stevens of Communities Against Substance Abuse told the council that she knew of no public health organizations that endorse using marijuana to treat diseases. She did agree that pot "will take away the pain because you're high, but that has nothing to do with illness."
Grossmont Union High School District Trustee Gary Woods told the council that "every board member, administrator, teacher, counselor and police officer (working in the district) is deeply concerned with the growing use of marijuana on high school campuses that is so easy for kids to access."
Woods said he was concerned that marijuana was becoming "big tobacco, using colorfully packaged cookies, candy, brownies and soda to get kids addicted so they have customers for life."
In 2010, El Cajon banned medical marijuana dispensaries. But until Tuesday's vote, there were no regulations prohibiting marijuana cultivation, the distribution of marijuana by mobile marijuana dispensaries and other marijuana delivery services, the manufacturing of marijuana products, or marijuana storage.
The El Cajon City Council has long been opposed to the legalization of marijuana citing public health concerns, safety of youth and not being in line with the city's economic development goals.
News Moderator: Robert Celt 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: California: El Cajon Not Interested In Marijuana
Author: Karen Pearlman
Contact: The San Diego Union-Tribune
Photo Credit: None found
Website: The San Diego Union-Tribune
