2pm today: EMERGENCY: Supervisor meeting on moratorium of MMJ clubs

Supervisor Michela Alioto-Pier plans to introduce an
emergency ordinance for a moratorium on medical
marijuana clubs at Tuesday's (Today?s) Board of
Supervisors meeting that could be passed as early as
next week. This info was in the Monday, March 21, San
Francisco Chronicle story below.

Please show your support for San Francisco?s medical
marijuana clubs, which are providing patient?s with
safe access to medicinal marijuana.

Board of Supervisors Regular Meeting
City and County of San Francisco
Legislative Chamber - Second Floor
City Hall, 1 Dr. Carlton B. Goodlett Place
San Francisco, CA 94102-4689
Tuesday, March 22, 2005
2:00 PM

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Source: San Francisco Chronicle (CA)
Author: Suzanne Herel, Chronicle Staff Writer
Published: Monday, March 21, 2005
Copyright:2004 San Francisco Chronicle
Contact: letters [at] sfchronicle.com
Website: http://www.sfgate.com/chronicle/

San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom called for a
moratorium today on medical marijuana clubs in the
city after learning that one such clinic planned to
open on the ground floor of a city-funded welfare
hotel that is home to a number of recovering drug
addicts.

"That obviously raised some concern, not just from the
community, not just from our Departments of Human
Services, but from the residents within the building
themselves, who appropriately said, ?Hey, I'm just
trying to get away from drugs and alcohol and here you
have a pot club downstairs,' " Newsom said.

"It was at that moment that our office started looking
at a way we could amend all of our contracts with the
Department of Human Services to restrict the ability
to purchase ... units under the Care Not Cash program
and restrict the use of medicinal marijuana clubs in
those facilities."

The pot club that grabbed Newsom's attention was the
Holistic Center, which plans to open this week on the
ground floor of the All-Star Hotel in the Mission
District. The hotel is among a dozen that serve
welfare tenants under Newsom's Care Not Cash program.

Since state voters passed Proposition 215 in 1996,
legalizing the use of medicinal marijuana, San
Francisco has become home to more than 30 percent of
the state's 125-plus dispensaries, Newsom said.
However, it's difficult to pinpoint exactly how many
such clinics operate in the city, he said, because
they are not regulated.

There are no legal requirements in San Francisco to
show an identification card when purchasing marijuana,
no licensing or permitting necessary for clubs, and no
restrictions on prices or client age.

"We have frankly -- let me be straight and honest --
been lax on this," Newsom said. "I will take personal
criticism to the extent that I am the mayor of San
Francisco, that I have not been diligent, and nor has
the elected family been diligent, in the oversight.

"I believe in the core of my cores that medicinal
marijuana is appropriate and right," Newsom said.
"That being said, I also think there needs to be some
common sense and grounding as it relates to the
proliferation of these clubs in San Francisco."

"We're on a path -- this is hyperbole -- but we are
conceivably walking down a path that would allow for a
club on every street corner in San Francisco," Newsom
said.

He pointed to other California municipalities that
have regulated the clinics, including Oakland, which
recently capped the number of medical marijuana
clinics at four.

"What may be appropriate for Oakland may not be
appropriate for San Francisco, but clearly there's
some precedent," Newsom said.

Supervisor Michela Alioto-Pier plans to introduce an
emergency ordinance for a moratorium at Tuesday's
Board of Supervisors meeting that could be passed as
early as next week. It will require approval from nine
of the 11 supervisors for passage.

Board President Aaron Peskin said that he would
support the mayor's initiative.

"It seems reasonable," he said. "Right now, it is the
only manner of land use that's not regulated. It's not
a matter of, are you for or against them. They should
be subject to the same rules we use for everything
from restaurants to adult theaters."

Related Articles & Web Site:

Americans For Safe Access
http://www.safeaccessnow.org

Medical Marijuana Information Links
http://freedomtoexhale.com/medical.htm

Pot Clubs - Press Democrat
http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread20378.shtml

Council Should Let Supreme Court Decide
http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread20331.shtml

Resolve Issues on Medical Pot
http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread20329.shtml

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