Palm Springs Gets Ready for a Collective

Terria Smith • The Desert Sun • July 12, 2009


Eleven medical marijuana collectives and cooperatives have submitted
applications to operate dispensaries in Palm Springs.

This comes three months after the city's zoning and land-use ordinance
regulating dispensaries was passed.

The ordinance allowed a 90-day window for establishments to apply to
become one of the city's two legally operated facilities, said Doug
Holland, Palm Springs city attorney.

Craig Ewing, director of Planning Services for the city, said it now
will have to work quickly to review the applications.

"According to the ordinance, we have 30 days to complete our review.
We've had a few in for a while so that's helped. It's going to be a
challenge. We've sent them over to the police; they can only go as fast
as state and federal (agencies) reply. We'll have a report to the city
manager with information we have by August 6," Ewing said.

Under the ordinance dispensaries may not operate in commercial areas,
Holland said.

There can also be no more than two dispensaries within city limits,
Holland said.

The city has filed suit against at least two unnamed dispensaries that
have been operating illegally, Holland said.

In addition to adhering to legal requirements the two dispensaries
should also have the ability to sufficiently provide cannabis for a
large number of patients, said Lanny Swerdlow, president of the
Marijuana Anti-Prohibition Project, a medical marijuana advocacy group,
with members in the Coachella Valley.

"You don't just sell marijuana. There are different strains for
different conditions. For insomnia there's one type, for pain there's
something else," Swerdlow said.

He estimates that each facility may have to service as many as 3,000 to
4,000 patients.

"The council members need to understand that patients need a variety
of medicines to meet their variety of needs," Swerdlow said.


Desert Sun reporter K Kaufmann contributed to this report.


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