MEDICAL MARIJUANA DISPENSARIES RUSHING TO GET IN LA PUENTE

LA PUENTE - With a new law regulating medical marijuana dispensaries
set to take effect this week, potential owners are rushing to get in
before it's too late.

If their applications are approved before Friday's deadline, the
number of dispensaries in La Puente would nearly double, essentially
rendering the city's new cap on them outdated.

"We could have more than six," said assistant city manager Greg
Yamachika.

La Puente capped the number of dispensaries at six when it crafted the
law in December because five applications had been approved and one
was pending.

Since then, five more dispensaries applied for business
licenses.

City officials insist that eleven dispensaries aren't likely because
the application process can often be lengthy.

"I highly doubt we'll have eleven," said Mayor Louie Lujan. "We'll
likely have at or below our limit."

Finding a location, securing a building lease and complying with other
city building codes is a lot of work, Lujan said.

"If you're not legit from the get-go, a week or two won't help your
cause," he said.

But Yamachika conceded that if a potential owner had all the proper
plans and paperwork in order, approvals could be received nearly instantly.

With six dispensaries, La Puente allowed more medical marijuana
businesses than any other city in the San Gabriel Valley.

The city proposed the regulations - it's the first attempt to rein in
the dispensaries - after a rash of inquires late last year.

La Puente formerly had a dispensary moratorium in place, but the law
lapsed without extension in September 2008. A proposal for an outright
ban failed in August 2008 - opening the door for the
dispensaries.

City officials couldn't say what is driving the recent spike in
applications.

"I don't know," Lujan said. "I'm not sure what's going on in their
minds."

Councilman Dan Holloway, who opposed allowing any medical marijuana
dispensaries, said that opening the door for any dispensaries likely
lead to the five new applications.

"They go to La Puente for no other reason than that they can," he
said. "La Puente, a small family-oriented city, doesn't have a need
for six dispensaries. My assumption is that their customers come from
all over."

City officials couldn't specify if and when the pending applications
would be approved.

Only one of the approved dispensaries - Trinity Wellness Group on Amar
Road - is operating.

At least three of the approved dispensaries were closed down because
of violations, city officials said.

The La Puente Collaborative on Hacienda Road, the city's first
dispensary, was shut Photo Gallery Rush to open Marijuana dispensaries
[With a new law regulating medical marijuana dispensaries set to take
effect this week, potential owners are rushing to get in before it's
too late.] down because of unapproved remodeling, officials said.

"The city has been harsh but they've been fair," said Scott Noelte,
one of the four people who runs the Green Comfort Collective on
Fairgrove Avenue.

Noelte's collective was shut down in mid-January after being open for
two weeks, he said. They didn't have a handicap-accessible bathroom
and needed it fixed before they could secure a certificate of
occupancy, Noelte said.

Among the rules beginning Friday, dispensaries can only operate from 8
a.m. to 8 p.m. And a security guard - who can be armed - must patrol
the area surrounding the shop.

The dispensaries must also put bars all windows, install 24-hour
security cameras and have separate waiting and dispensing areas.

On Tuesday, the city took another step to enacting more rules. The
city's Planning Commission voted 4-0 to approve a proposed ordinance
and recommended that dispensaries be 700 feet from schools, libraries
and parks.

If approved by the City Council, all six approved dispensaries would
be in violation and have a year to comply with the ordinance, said
planning commissioner Gil Duarte.

The council will take up the proposal at its next meeting.

At Trinity Wellness, owner Jon Salman will be waiting to see what
happen this week with the pending applications.

If they are approved before the cap goes into effect, he won't be
happy.

He said he's done everything he can to comply with city regulations to
stay open.

"What's unfair is that we went through so many hoops to get in and
others now can jump in," he said.