CORTE MADERA: CANNABIS COLLECTIVE CAPITAL OF MARIN

Corte Madera officials are pondering what to do, if anything, about
two pot clubs that have quietly sprung up in an office complex,
suddenly making the sleepy central Marin town the cannabis collective
capital of Marin.

Marin Holistic Solutions, a medical-marijuana collective that opened
at 200 Tamal Plaza on June 1, is owned and operated by patients who
volunteer time or donate money to support the group and its
out-of-county growers, said Scot Candell, a Larkspur resident and
patient with rheumatoid arthritis who volunteers his time as the
collective's attorney.

"I think that people should have access to their medication without
fear of repercussions," he said. "I think we are trying to treat them
as patients, instead of treating them as stoners."

The collective, and a group called Going Green that has opened a shop
in the same cluster of office buildings, has town officials curious.
Officials could not say for sure what permissions were required or
procured, although Candell said all legal requirements had been met.
Going Green did not return a call seeking comment. When approached at
402 Tamal Plaza, the person who answered the door to the office,
which smelled strongly of the potent plant, slammed it shut and locked it.

"They're on the radar," said David Bracken, town manager. "The town
via the Town Council is currently considering which and what approach
to take with the establishment(s). We're considering what the impacts
are and what to do about it.

"Regardless of how you feel about it you need to put that aside and
look at what's on the books - what's legal and what isn't," Bracken said.

"We are well aware of it. We are looking into a few things," Twin
Cities police Detective Patrick Eddinger said. "There's other
cannabis clubs in the county, so we're trying to look and see how the
other towns handle that.

"We haven't taken a stand on anything at this point," he said.

As of 1996, state law allows for possession and cultivation of
marijuana for medical purposes by patients who obtain a doctor's
approval. But under federal law, possession of marijuana is a
misdemeanor and cultivation a felony.

There are several groups offering medical marijuana in Marin.

In Fairfax, Marin Alliance for Medical Marijuana has been in
existence for 13 years. The operation has a business license and a use permit.

In Novato, a medical-marijuana group called Apela Collective has been
quietly operating in the Ignacio Center on Entrada Drive since
January. The landlord is attempting to evict the group. The city
supports the move, saying the group misrepresented the nature of the
business in its lease agreement.

A Sausalito pot club that opened last year recently closed due to
break-ins. The city had issued notice that the group, Gate Five
Caregivers, was in violation of a city moratorium against medical
marijuana collectives, but the group shut down on its own.

Members of Marin Holistic Solutions say they are intent on
maintaining a low profile. The collective is not listed in the
building's directory, although a sign on the suite door welcomes visitors.

Seated last week in the collective's tidy and odorless waiting room
was Jacqueline Patterson, 30, a student who lives in Fairfax who has
cerebral palsy and chronic pain from a car accident. She talked about
the importance of medical marijuana in her life.

"This collective means to me that patients not only have the right
but the opportunity to holistically care for themselves," she said.
"Another thing we are going to be doing is helping patients to become
stronger advocates for themselves and for their rights. I think that
is a very important aspect of this collective."