SAN JOSE TAKES FIRST STEPS TO LIMIT MEDICAL MARIJUANA CLUBS

After an hour of passionate testimony from medicinal marijuana
advocates and desperate pleas from parents worried about cannabis
dispensaries near preschools, the San Jose City Council on Tuesday
took its first steps to regulate medical marijuana - but pushed an
even bigger debate down the road.

In a unanimous vote, the council gave the city the right to shut down
any medical marijuana dispensary within 500 feet of sensitive sites,
such as schools, day care centers and homes. The move would shutter
about a half dozen of the 60 clubs that have sprouted up in recent
months since the Obama administration said it would no longer go
after medical marijuana in states such as California that allow it.

The council also agreed to return Aug. 3 to consider placing a
measure on the November ballot to tax the sales of medical marijuana.

"I'm glad the council decided to pause and take a little time to
understand the issue before we decide on something that's really a
complex issue," said Mayor Chuck Reed, who pushed the recommendations
in a memo along with Councilman Pierluigi Oliverio.

"We focused what resources we had on getting rid of the ones (clubs)
that are the biggest problems - the ones closest to residences or
schools," Reed said.

Oliverio agreed, saying later that he was happy the council "acted to
preserve and protect the neighborhoods while at the same time
allowing compassionate use of medicinal marijuana for revenue to pay
for city services."

Marijuana supporters blasted a separate proposal, supported by the
city manager, attorney and police chief, that urged the council to
adopt an emergency ordinance. That proposal would have limited the
number of dispensaries in San Jose to 10, demanded patient records be
shared with the city, and required all marijuana sold at dispensaries
be grown on site, among other rules.

Tuesday's vote was more of a baby step toward the city adopting
tougher regulations of its growing number of medicinal marijuana
dispensaries, which have flourished since October after Oliverio
first suggested the city adopt an ordinance similar to those in other
Bay Area cities to regulate and tax dispensaries.

The dispensaries remain illegal under current city law, and the
dozens that have opened have done so at their own risk, though San
Jose started tackling complaints related to about 24 clubs since January.

Several other South Bay cities, including Gilroy, Los Gatos, Saratoga
and Los Altos, have recently passed dispensary moratoriums.

Local medical marijuana advocates say there are tens of thousands of
users with doctor's recommendations for the drug who have largely
been left to rely on providers in San Francisco, Berkeley, Oakland
and Santa Cruz. Now, finally, to their relief there are dozens of
options closer to home in San Jose.

Despite his vote, Reed continues to caution that the proposal should
not be seen as a welcome mat for marijuana drugstores.

"The important thing to remember is that all the ones operating here
are operating illegally, but while they're illegal, we have to focus
our resources on the ones causing trouble," Reed said. He said the
council will take up the more complex aspects surrounding the issue
after the Nov. 2 general election, when voters statewide will decide
whether they want to legalize recreational use of the drug.

Still, many of Tuesday's speakers pleaded with the council to approve
the harsher emergency ordinance.

Sue Campbell, co-owner with her husband and daughter of Alphabet Soup
Preschool in West San Jose, was among them.

She spoke not only of a medicinal marijuana club that opened in early
May about 20 feet from the school, but also of a nearby shop that
sells pipes and other paraphernalia.

"My parents are concerned," she told the council, adding afterward
that they are uncomfortable bringing their children to the school and
uncomfortable "answering their children's questions about it."

But others, such as 43-year-old medicinal marijuana user and San Jose
resident Julie Kline, told the council that she was "outraged and
dismayed by the emergency ordinance," saying the city's proposal was
in "direct conflict with the spirit of Proposition 215 as well as
with (medical records privacy) laws as well as my rights under the
state and federal constitution to free association and to privacy."
The audience applauded wildly.

Hours before the meeting, dozens of advocates opposed to the
emergency ordinance gathered in front of City Hall waving placards
that read "Don't Kill Safe Access" and "Cannabis Heals."

"Patients have rights, and it's about time the council stepped up and
took a look at that," said Paul Stewart, a 58-year-old consultant and
medical marijuana user.

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FIRST STEPS TOWARD REGULATING MARIJUANA

WHAT HAPPENED: The council agreed that the city can shut down any
medical marijuana dispensary within 500 feet of sensitive sites, such
as schools, day care centers and homes.

WHAT DIDN'T HAPPEN: The council avoided an emergency ordinance
related to the dispensaries that would restrict the number of
dispensaries to 10 and demand that all marijuana be grown on site.
Instead, the council will continue to study the matter and vote on
the issue at a later date.

WHAT'S NEXT: The council agreed to vote at its Aug. 3 meeting whether
to place a measure on the November ballot to tax medical marijuana.