HEMPERY LEFT OUT BY COUNCIL VOTE

Hayward Allows Two Dispensaries To Remain Open

HAYWARD -- This year will mark both the 10th anniversary of The Hayward
Hempery and the likely closure of its pot dispensary, as a result of a
surprise City Council decision Tuesday.

The council was scheduled to consider grandfathering in The Hempery and the
Local Patients' Cooperative -- both on Foothill Boulevard near B Street --
as part of a compromise agreement that evolved from a city task force on
medical marijuana. The dispensaries, including a third one that recently
opened in the same vicinity on Foothill, have been operating in violation
of Hayward's zoning law.

The council instead voted 7-0 to sanction Local Patients' Cooperative and
the new Hayward Patients' Resource Center (HPRC), a revival of the former B
Street Helping Hands Patients' Center.

That means The Hempery -- one of Alameda County's best-known and oldest
medical marijuana suppliers -- will have to close its dispensary. The
Hempery also sells hemp clothing and products, said owner Cheryl Adams, who
was floored by the news Wednesday morning.

"I was never notified of any of this," she said, adding that she planned to
talk to Mayor Roberta Cooper about what she views as the unfairness of the
decision.

Adams disputes The Hempery's reputation in some quarters that hard drugs
and other unsavory activities take place there. Adams didn't go to
Tuesday's meeting because some-one had called the dispensary to say it was
postponed to Dec. 2, she said. That postponement was true for the city of
Oakland's deliberations on the issue, but not Hayward's.

Twenty-three medical marijuana advocates testified Tues-day to try to
convince the council to grandfather in three, not two dispensaries. Many
were there to support HPRC owner Jane Weirick, who opened the dispensary in
her dress shop to serve the patients and employees of Helping Hands.

"If I had known, I would have had (my patients) come out, too," Adams said.

The dispensaries aren't new, but their profiles were raised earlier this
year after a story in The Daily Review about a proposed new dispensary. The
city turned down the proposed new owner and notified the existing
dispensary owners that they were violating the law.

That led Cooper to form an ad hoc committee, with the hope of coming up
with a way to allow the dispensaries to continue serving patients, despite
conflicting federal and state law.

Councilman Kevin Dowling's motion Tuesday to leave out The Hempery followed
11/2 hours of testimony and debate about whether to grandfather in two or
three dispensaries.

The grandfathering would last three years. At that point, if laws aren't
reconciled, the dispensaries will have to close. Despite instructions from
Cooper, the debate also ended up being about whether to let Weirick,
heralded by her supporters as a champion of medical marijuana patients,
keep her dispensary open.

"This is not about Jane," Cooper said, in an attempt to limit rehashing of
testimonials given on her behalf at a work session last month.

At the work session, the council made no decision about whether it would
sanction two or three dispensaries. But most members appeared supportive of
Weirick and her dispensary.

Some medical marijuana advocates interpreted that support as a done deal.
So did Weirick, who was shocked to read a report from City Manager Jesus
Armas on Friday recommending the council grandfather in the original two
included in the task force recommendation, and not hers.

"I'm as confused as I can be. I left the last work session believing the
issues had been settled," she said, in tears, adding that she had already
planned a Thanksgiving din-ner and bought Christmas decorations. "Please
don't deprive our patients of their caregivers."

Others faulted the council, stating that it hadn't listened to the patients.

The testimony started to offend council members who pride themselves on
Hayward's status as the compassionate "Heart of the Bay."

Cooper did respond to medical marijuana activist Ed Rosenthal, who said
limiting the dispensaries is unconstitutional under state law and not fair
to consumers.

"You're treating these dispensaries as if they're nuisances," Rosenthal
said, adding that the ACLU could challenge that limitation. "Basic-ally,
this is an herb shop. I don't think you can close them down."

Cooper replied that "telling this council that we don't know what we're
doing doesn't bode well."

After pointing out that the majority of those who testified were not
Hayward residents, Cooper said it was "disingenuous" for Weirick, who
served on the medical marijuana task force as president of the Medical
Cannabis Association, to later try to change the recommendation to which
she was a party.

That sent Weirick and a group of her supporters storming out of the room.

Although he wanted to grandfather in all three dispensaries, Dowling
realized he didn't have the votes for that and offered the compromise motion.

If not all three, he said, why not choose the two that have the best
reputations?

Councilman Olden Henson agreed, adding that The Hempery has had some
"police action issues."

Police raided The Hempery in 2000, when it was owned by founder Bob Wilson.
Although officers found a marijuana-growing operation inside, no charges
were filed. Before that, the Hempery was held up at gunpoint.

More recently, Adams said The Hempery was robbed on Nov. 7 of $30,000 worth
of marijuana. She didn't report it to the police, however, at the urging of
Weirick. Weirick said she was concerned the news could interfere with the
council deliberations.

The council also voted unanimously on an ordinance that recognizes medical
marijuana identification cards issued by other cities and counties. That
will have to go back to the council for a second reading.

The decision about grandfathering the dispensaries, including a list of
conditions by which they will have to abide, is final, unless a council
member asks to reconsider it.