Jim Finnel
Fallen Cannabis Warrior & Ex News Moderator
The Marin Alliance for Medical Marijuana in Fairfax is struggling financially, and the West Marin cooperative that supplies it with much of its marijuana, Medi-Cone, has agreed to come it its aid.
"We're still covering our overhead, but I'm definitely worried," said Lynnette Shaw, the alliance's founder and director. The alliance opened its office at 6 School Street Plaza in 1996 after passage of Proposition 215, the Compassionate Use Act.
Medi-Cone plans to remodel the down-at-the-heels club, expand services there and provide a raft of other management services such as product testing, staff education and enhanced security services.
"We want to increase the patient base, bring back some of the patients that may have decided to go elsewhere and bring in new patients," said Matthew Witemyre, Medi-Cone's chief of staff. He said the remodel will include new carpets, paint, and counter layout.
"We will also be providing Marin Alliance's patients with exclusive access to various strains of Medi-Cone's award-winning medical cannabis," Witemyre said.
Medi-Cone is a 10-member medical marijuana cooperative based at an undisclosed location in West Marin. The cooperative -- whose members belong to the United Food and Commercial Workers Union, Local 5 -- cultivates and packages marijuana for the Marin Alliance and 24 other cooperatives throughout the state. Its founding member has been supplying marijuana to the Marin Alliance for more
than 10 years.
Witemyre said Medi-Cone had formed a management company to allow it to assist the Marin Alliance for a one-year period beginning Jan. 1. Medi-Cone is charging the club $1 for its services.
"This is not a money-making venture for us," Witemyre said. "This is out of gratitude for all the work Lynnette has done over the years and in order to help the patient base here."
Shaw said the alliance's sales are down. She attributes most of the drop to the anemic economy.
"My patients are not wealthy," Shaw said. "These are sick people with a limited income. They really scrape along."
Shaw acknowledged, however, that the alliance may also be losing sales due to increased competition from new medical marijuana dispensaries that have opened in Marin County since the Obama administration eased federal prosecution of marijuana laws. Some dispensaries outside Marin also deliver here.
"We're evaluating this," Shaw said.
Scot Candell, a San Rafael lawyer who represents three of the new marijuana dispensaries, said, "It seems obvious. The Marin Alliance had a monopoly in Marin for about 10 years where patients had no choices. Now patients are being given some very enticing alternatives. They can join a collective like the Marin Wellness Center, which is a very nice place."
The upscale Wellness Center in Kentfield, which Candell represents, features sleek hardwood floors, reed diffusers that emit aromatherapy scents and gourmet-style savory foods and desserts. It also offers other services, such as massage.
In addition to the Wellness Center, Candell represents Marin Holistic Solutions in Corte Madera and Green Tiger in Novato. All three are open for business, even though the Marin Wellness Center and the Green Tiger are battling attempts by government officials to close them. Last month, Marin Holistic Solutions signed a settlement agreement with the town of Corte Madera that allows it to remain open until its lease expires on May 31, 2014.
Witemyre said Medi-Cone wants to improve and expand services provided at the Marin Alliance.
"A lot of other clubs and dispensaries offer things such as yoga or meditation and other social services to patients," Witemyre said, "so we're really interested at looking at the opportunities there."
Witemyre said Medi-Cone also hopes to reduce Marin Alliances' prices. It charges patients $55 for an eighth of an ounce of marijuana. Witemyre said retail prices for marijuana in California have not come down despite a bumper fall crop.
"Right now on the macro level there is more cannabis in the state of California than there has ever been but the retail prices aren't going down at the dispensaries, and we don't think that's right for the patients," Witemyre said.
NewsHawk: User: 420 MAGAZINE
Source: tradingmarkets.com
Copyright: 2010 The Connors Group, Inc.
Contact: rhalstead@marinij.com
Website: Fairfax marijuana dispensary to get facelift thanks to West Marin grower | TradingMarkets.com
"We're still covering our overhead, but I'm definitely worried," said Lynnette Shaw, the alliance's founder and director. The alliance opened its office at 6 School Street Plaza in 1996 after passage of Proposition 215, the Compassionate Use Act.
Medi-Cone plans to remodel the down-at-the-heels club, expand services there and provide a raft of other management services such as product testing, staff education and enhanced security services.
"We want to increase the patient base, bring back some of the patients that may have decided to go elsewhere and bring in new patients," said Matthew Witemyre, Medi-Cone's chief of staff. He said the remodel will include new carpets, paint, and counter layout.
"We will also be providing Marin Alliance's patients with exclusive access to various strains of Medi-Cone's award-winning medical cannabis," Witemyre said.
Medi-Cone is a 10-member medical marijuana cooperative based at an undisclosed location in West Marin. The cooperative -- whose members belong to the United Food and Commercial Workers Union, Local 5 -- cultivates and packages marijuana for the Marin Alliance and 24 other cooperatives throughout the state. Its founding member has been supplying marijuana to the Marin Alliance for more
than 10 years.
Witemyre said Medi-Cone had formed a management company to allow it to assist the Marin Alliance for a one-year period beginning Jan. 1. Medi-Cone is charging the club $1 for its services.
"This is not a money-making venture for us," Witemyre said. "This is out of gratitude for all the work Lynnette has done over the years and in order to help the patient base here."
Shaw said the alliance's sales are down. She attributes most of the drop to the anemic economy.
"My patients are not wealthy," Shaw said. "These are sick people with a limited income. They really scrape along."
Shaw acknowledged, however, that the alliance may also be losing sales due to increased competition from new medical marijuana dispensaries that have opened in Marin County since the Obama administration eased federal prosecution of marijuana laws. Some dispensaries outside Marin also deliver here.
"We're evaluating this," Shaw said.
Scot Candell, a San Rafael lawyer who represents three of the new marijuana dispensaries, said, "It seems obvious. The Marin Alliance had a monopoly in Marin for about 10 years where patients had no choices. Now patients are being given some very enticing alternatives. They can join a collective like the Marin Wellness Center, which is a very nice place."
The upscale Wellness Center in Kentfield, which Candell represents, features sleek hardwood floors, reed diffusers that emit aromatherapy scents and gourmet-style savory foods and desserts. It also offers other services, such as massage.
In addition to the Wellness Center, Candell represents Marin Holistic Solutions in Corte Madera and Green Tiger in Novato. All three are open for business, even though the Marin Wellness Center and the Green Tiger are battling attempts by government officials to close them. Last month, Marin Holistic Solutions signed a settlement agreement with the town of Corte Madera that allows it to remain open until its lease expires on May 31, 2014.
Witemyre said Medi-Cone wants to improve and expand services provided at the Marin Alliance.
"A lot of other clubs and dispensaries offer things such as yoga or meditation and other social services to patients," Witemyre said, "so we're really interested at looking at the opportunities there."
Witemyre said Medi-Cone also hopes to reduce Marin Alliances' prices. It charges patients $55 for an eighth of an ounce of marijuana. Witemyre said retail prices for marijuana in California have not come down despite a bumper fall crop.
"Right now on the macro level there is more cannabis in the state of California than there has ever been but the retail prices aren't going down at the dispensaries, and we don't think that's right for the patients," Witemyre said.
NewsHawk: User: 420 MAGAZINE
Source: tradingmarkets.com
Copyright: 2010 The Connors Group, Inc.
Contact: rhalstead@marinij.com
Website: Fairfax marijuana dispensary to get facelift thanks to West Marin grower | TradingMarkets.com
