BERKELEY POT DISPENSARY'S PLANNED MOVE ANGERS DEVELOPER

A medical marijuana outfit plans to move to the former Scharffen
Berger chocolate building in booming West Berkeley, but a developer
who owns 22 buildings in the area is warning the city that he will sue
if that happens.

Berkeley Patients Group, a nonprofit operating in the city for 10
years, wants to lease the 28,000-square-foot building at the corner of
Heinz Avenue and Seventh Street next to the new Berkeley Bowl West
supermarket.

Wareham Development recently sent the city a letter threatening to
sue, and the City Council will take up the matter during a closed
session Tuesday.

Andrew Neilly, a Wareham spokesman, said the company doesn't have a
problem with medical marijuana but fears a dispensary in the
neighborhood could drive away business.

"Wareham has been involved in the city's quest to create a green
technology corridor that would attract and maintain business, and
we're not sure (medical marijuana) fits in there," Neilly said.
"Imagine trying to get some clean-technology CEO to come in, and you
point out there's a warehouse growing pot down the street."

If Wareham chooses to sue, it might have to push to overturn Measure
JJ, which voters approved in 2008. It allows a medical marijuana
dispensary to be virtually anywhere in the city without a public
hearing. Measure JJ limits city approval to an over-the-counter permit.

"Our letter states that if a zoning certificate is issued, a legal
action would be taken, and we think a challenge to (Measure JJ) would
be successful," Neilly said.

Berkeley Councilman Darryl Moore, whose district includes the proposed
site, said he is "hoping to work with both groups to come up with an
acceptable resolution" before any lawsuits are filed.

Brad Senesac, a spokesman for Berkeley Patients Group, said he also
hopes to get a meeting with anyone who is opposed to the nonprofit's
move.

"We hope to change any opposition by providing more information on how
we operate," Senesac said. "We have strict rules and regulations and a
good-neighbor policy. If you don't follow our good-neighbor policies,
we ask you not to come back."

The dispensary's current location on San Pablo Avenue is across the
street from the Center for Early Intervention on Deafness, which
receives a portion of the $300,000 the dispensary donates to
organizations in the city each year, Senesac said.

Measure JJ prohibits medical marijuana dispensaries in Berkeley from
setting up shop within 1,000 feet of public schools, but it says
nothing about private schools. The new site at Heinz and Seventh has
two schools nearby, Ecole Bilingue de Berkeley and Aquatic Park Preschool.

Officials at Ecole Bilingue said they were aware of Berkeley Patients
Group's plan to move to the building and were "surprised" to learn the
law protects public, but not private, schools.

An Ecole Bilingue spokeswoman said it is too early to say whether the
school will take a more public stand either for or against the
dispensary's proposed new location.