WITH DEADLINE LOOMING, DISPENSARY OPPONENT CIRCULATES PETITION

Nevada City leaders face a critical deadline in the process to
regulate proposed medical marijuana dispensaries.

Wednesday marks the end of a 90-day moratorium on marijuana shops in
Nevada City, so council members meeting that night must either vote
to extend the moratorium once again, or allow it to expire.

If they let the moratorium lapse, they must approve an ordinance
regulating dispensaries, opening the door for applicants. Three
people have expressed interest.

Meanwhile, Nevada City resident Susan Reynolds has been collecting
signatures from business owners and residents opposing a dispensary.

No one knows what's going on, and when I tell them, they're
appalled," Reynolds said. "A lot of people are completely uninformed."

As the debate continues, "it seem(s) like people have swayed away
from the idea," said applicant and Nevada County resident Jim Henry,
co-owner of the Golden State Patient Care Collective in Colfax.

Henry has a landlord ready to rent space in a retail area of town.
Nevertheless, "it's not real encouraging at this time, and the
atmosphere has changed considerably," Henry said.

Councilman David McKay has said he believes Nevada City is too small
for a dispensary. Councilwoman Sally Harris has expressed concerns
about safety.

Mayor Reinette Senum and Councilwoman Barbara Coffman support the concept.

Nevada City Vice Mayor Robert Bergman would not say which way he
would go next week.

Regulating pot shops Even if the moratorium ends, a dispensary would
have to earn Planning Commission and City Council approval before
opening, as long as it meets the terms of a yet-to-be passed ordinance.

Since council members declined to vote on a draft ordinance last
month, officials have been crafting another one, City Manager Gene
Albaugh said Thursday.

Bergman, who, like other council members, has visited Henry's Colfax
store, expressed concerns with the business model: A dispensary
should act as a closed system in which marijuana farmers grow for the
exclusive use of the dispensary to which they sell, he said.

Applicant Harry Bennett, of Nevada City, has said his facility would
not sell paraphernalia, and smoking or ingesting products on the
premises would be prohibited -- provisions likely to be included in
an ordinance.

A pot shop would generate sales taxes for the city -- but perhaps not
enough to cover the cost of regulation and law enforcement, Albaugh said.

Concern over location

City staff have suggested two locations -- the Seven Hills Business
District and Gold Flat Industrial Park -- for possible dispensaries.
However, the areas might be unsuitable because four schools operate
nearby, staff noted in a report.

I don't know where there would be a place in the city where someone
would feel comfortable about having a shop," said Dave Painter, whose
family has owned and operated SPD Market in the Seven Hills district
since 1959. "I have no problem with it, but it's too bad the
drugstores can't just dispense (marijuana)."

High school district Superintendent Ralf Swenson plans to speak at
the Aug. 12 meeting, highlighting the district's concerns about drug
use among students in general -- and a $5 million grant the county
Superintendent of Schools Office just received for, among other
things, drug and alcohol abuse prevention.

We want that to be something the City Council considers in its
decision," Swenson said.

Those who say marijuana alleviates health problems also want consideration.

It's very mainstream," Alta Sierra resident Carole Chapman said. She
uses it to ease the pain of carpal tunnel syndrome, and also has
applied to open a dispensary.

I'm just a grandma who needs it," Chapman added.

Reynolds, armed with maps showing the location of schools in the two
areas being considered for dispensaries, wanted to slow down the whole process.

For people who don't want this, they have to show up and ask why,"
said Reynolds, who lives next door to applicant Bennett. "There
simply hasn't been enough time for the community to access or digest
the information."

Wednesday's Nevada City Council meeting starts at 7 p.m. at City
Hall, 317 Broad St. downtown.