Local pot shops got a slight reprieve Tuesday when the City Council voted in favor of extending permit deadlines until November 2013 – maintaining a unilateral freeze on the process but leaving the door open to allowing medical marijuana dispensaries to continue to operate. “This isn’t changing anything directly, it’s just extending deadlines and keeping the status quo for the moment,” City Councilwoman Sandy Sheedy said. In November, the City Council adopted an interim city marijuana ordinance extending the application deadline from Oct. 11 to May 14, and extending the final permit completion date from Jan. 9 to Aug. 13, – essentially “freezing” the permit process. Tuesday’s 8-1 vote e

City Councilman Jay Schenirer said he wants to send a message to California lawmakers about the need to set clear guidelines for regulating medical marijuana with a resolution that highlights Sacramento as a model to follow. The resolution – drafted with the help of local medical cannabis industry lobbyist Max Del Real – will suggest an alternative to the way the state is handling the cannabis issue. “The resolution would talk about what we’ve done in Sacramento and the fact that we have a model program. We want to try to move the state forward in trying to clean up this mess,” Schenirer said Thursday. “My hope is that we can try to be a little bit of a catalyst with the state,” he adde

Signature gathering began this month for a new ballot initiative aimed at allowing medical marijuana dispensaries to operate in Sacramento despite a recent ban on cannabis-related operations in the county. The “Patient Access to Regulated Medical Cannabis Act of 2012” is the product of the newly established Committee for Safe Patient Access to Regulated Cannabis (CSPARC), organized by local medical marijuana industry advocate Mickey Martin. “In December when the Board of Supervisors passed the back-door ban on medical marijuana, there were a lot of people (who felt that) what they were passing was just bad policy,” Martin said Monday. “(The policy) just doesn’t address the issue,” Marti

In 2011, medical marijuana dispensaries in Sacramento city and county went from being barely legal to riding a wave of potential for acceptance – but in the end, saw the future of their operations heavily scrutinized or banned outright. Here’s what happened on the medical marijuana scene this year: In February, medical marijuana dispensaries in the city were lining up to complete a permit application process that would allow a limited number of facilities to operate within city limits. Pot shops that didn’t apply for the proper permits – or had applications denied through the process – were shut down by city code enforcement. Once the application deadline passed for the first part of a

With an 8-1 vote Tuesday, the City Council put a nine-month hold on the application and permit process for medical marijuana dispensaries, bringing everything to a standstill. City Councilman Darrell Fong was the only dissenting vote, citing concerns that proximity of dispensaries to schools and parks is not adequately addressed in the ordinance. The freeze left some dispensary operators and medical marijuana patients concerned for the future of dispensaries and of the ability to access medicine. The Sacramento Press asked people for their opinion of the current state of limbo that medical marijuana dispensaries are in. Reactions from Sacramentans ranged from mild to animated – one thin

Under heavy scrutiny from the federal government and an administrative freeze on the city’s permit program, medical marijuana dispensaries in Sacramento could face a full ban – but if Sacramento’s dispensaries are shut down, what happens to the city budget bottom line? In total, the city has received approximately $1.4 million since the start of the permit process for medical marijuana dispensaries – nearly $1 million from one-time fees – according to Maurice Chaney, Economic Development Department spokesman. If the city were to ban medical marijuana dispensaries, they could see a potential $528,000 budget shortfall from reduced or eliminated marijuana business operations taxes in the 20

Instead of pursuing an ordinance to allow special permits for medical marijuana dispensary operations in the county, local business owners learned Thursday that county officials are taking steps to reinforce the current ban. “The Board of Supervisors is headed in a direction to reinforce a stance that the county does not permit medical marijuana dispensaries,” Leighann Moffitt, principal planner with the Sacramento County Planning Department said Thursday. A new section of the county zoning code is being proposed that specifically prohibits activity that violates federal or state law in any way. Moffitt spoke to local business owners as a featured guest at the Arden Arcade Business Coun

The permit process for medical marijuana dispensaries came to a screeching halt Tuesday after the City Council adopted an interim city marijuana ordinance that puts applications on hold for nine months. The unanimous vote to approve the ordinance came as a reaction to recent changes in the federal government’s position on enforcing marijuana regulations. Greg Bitter, principal planner with the city’s Community Development Department, told council members Tuesday that the city attorney became concerned with the current Sacramento medical marijuana ordinance after learning about two legal situations – a court case in Long Beach and a press release from the four state attorneys general. Th

Two cannabis-themed events with “frightful” overtones are planned for Saturday night at two Sacramento medical cannabis dispensaries. One event is a fund-raiser for a group of patients, medical professionals, scientists and concerned citizens promoting safe and legal access to cannabis for therapeutic use and research. The other event marks a dispensary’s closure as Sacramento County and the federal government put the scare on the industry. At Common Roots Collective in south Sacramento, the cannabis activist group Americans for Safe Access hosts “Puff Puff Politics.” According to ASA’s flyer for the event, “It’s like a wine tasting but with cannabis.” Three top medical strains will be ta

Local medical marijuana dispensaries recently came under fire as the federal government began cracking down on illegal marijuana growing and dispensing operations across the nation. But wait – medical marijuana is legal in California, right? Yes and no. In the wake of a June 2011 memo sent to state attorney generals from the Department of Justice warning of the federal government’s intention to shut down illegal marijuana operations, there have been numerous raids on dispensaries in California. Some local operators have received warning letters that they may be next. “Joanne,” a dispensary operator in Sacramento who wants to remain anonymous, said Wednesday that local operators have al

With more than $5,000 in code violations and the threatened closure of two adacent businesses, Johnny Zonneveld, a U.S. Marines combat veteran who uses medical cannabis to battle post-traumatic stress disorder, conceded a skirmish in Sacramento County’s war on medical cannabis dispensaries and closed Sunnyfields Collective on Thursday. Sunnyfields joins One Solution, City of Trees, California Holistic Care, Citizen Collective, The Reserve, PACC Wellness, All Natural Solutions and Fort Kush among the confirmed casualties in the $1 million war that Sacramento County is borrowing to wage on medical cannabis dispensaries. The story of former infantryman and dispensary owner Johnny Zonneveld

A former Assistant U.S. Attorney speaking in favor of the federal government’s pot pogrom said recently that a letter from the U.S. Attorney warning medical cannabis dispensaries and the landlords who rent to them is a good thing. “This letter is the best news that marijuana growers have ever received from the federal government because this letter is a courtesy that most people don’t get,” Bill Portanova said. In the courtesy vein, but on the opposite side of the battle, Auburn Health & Organics, one of scores of medical cannabis dispensaries operating without the required permits that Sacramento County refuses to issue in the first place, is giving its patients the courtesy of a heads-

Once upon a time, when I was a restaurant critic in a second city in a bad economy, I chased restaurants -- the delayed openings, the quick closures, the inspections in between, the cooks who served good food vs. the operators in it for a buck. It put a taste in my mouth. Today, in the state capital of medical cannabis in an even worse economy, I spend a lot of time chasing medical cannabis dispensaries -- not the ones that advertise themselves openly and regularly in Sacramento's newspapers, keep regular hours of operation and work hard to make themselves part of the Camellia City's community, but the ones that don't advertise themselves to the public, or maybe do once or twice to mark t

Joint. Spliff. Pre-roll. By any name, it’s arguably the most known and widely recognized vehicle associated with smoking pot. It’s certainly the most convenient. It’s portable. It’s easy to share — making it a truly social medium. You can even eat one — as medicine, of course — if it comes to that. And talk about portion control: You can cut a joint in half, thirds, quarters, smoke a bit and save the rest for later. Some joints have enough pot packed in them that you can re-roll their contents into two joints. Now that’s value. In Sacramento medical marijuana dispensaries, joints sell for as little as $2.50 each to as much as $15 each; doobies are doled out as patient rewards; and,

If you’re a medical marijuana patient and a bicycle enthusiast, Sacramento is the perfect place to combine your quests for medicine and exercise — kind of like those popular pedaling pub crawls, but without the drunkards. With more than three dozen dispensaries in the city and twice that number in the county, Sacramento bicyclists pedal past a plethora of places peddling pot to Prop. 215 patients. Cruising Midtown and downtown on your fat-tired cruiser? There are 12 dispensaries you can bike to, half of which are on designated bike routes that cross-hatch The Grid. Easy rides, all of them. Touring the American River Bike Trail on your Cannondale? From Old Sacramento to Folsom Lake, ther

Hempfest Sacramento begins its inaugural three-day run today at the Rio Ramaza RV park on the Sacramento River just across the Sutter County line, and some of the performers are getting on their pre-func at Sacramento medical marijuana dispensaries today. Long Beach rapper Warren G, who performs today and Saturday at Hempfest, will make an in-dispensary appearance at Fort Kush, 6150 Florin Road, some time today. Call 916-424-2566 for details. He’s scheduled to appear at Hempfest at 4:20 p.m. today, so do the math or make the call for the exact time. Also today, comics from the Chronic Laughter Show, including Sacramento-based stand-up Mike Sinclair, will perform at River City Wellness (3

Medical marijuana awareness will reach its peak in Sacramento and Sutter counties this weekend as the Freedom Entertainment Group presents the inaugural Hempfest Sacramento. The purpose of the event is to “promote awareness and to educate the uneducated on the purposes and benefits of cannabis,” said Kristina Wheeler, event organizer for the festival. The three-day festival will take place at the Rio Ramaza Marina, RV & Event Park in south Sutter County. The 14-acre marina is complete with an outside dance floor, misting fans and plenty of shade and is known for hosting zydeco music, pirate festivals and Louisiana-style food-and-music-themed events. The location also offers a two-night-

A proposed urgency ordinance to regulate medical marijuana dispensaries within the county was voted down by the Sacramento County Board of Supervisors June 22, but the issue is far from dead in the water. Representatives of dispensary owners are speaking out in support of regulation that recognizes medical cannabis as a legitimate industry that is here to stay. Max Del Real, a lobbyist for the Sacramento Alliance of County Collectives (SACC), a medical cannabis trade association, spoke at the board meeting in June in opposition to the failed ordinance. “The county had proposed an ordinance that would essentially close down all of the dispensaries in the county,” Del Real said. “They had

Nearly all of Sacramento's medical marijuana dispensaries have applied to keep operating legally under new city regulations. City revenue staff have begun processing documents from 35 dispensaries that submitted applications under the city's first ordinance regulating the not-for-profit shops. Dispensaries with pending applications can continue operating until Jan. 9, 2012, under the regulations. Four of the city's 39 registered medical marijuana dispensaries didn't turn in applications by a Monday deadline, said city Revenue Division Manager Brad Wasson. "We're going to regulate this pretty extensively and be proactive," he said. In November, the Sacramento City Council created the ci

Local medical marijuana dispensaries must face a lengthy list of fees under the city’s new medical pot regulations. The Sacramento City Council approved new rules and fees for medical marijuana dispensaries on Tuesday. Depending on the medical marijuana dispensary, fees of roughly $33,000 or $39,600 will be paid in the application process for the first year of operation, said Joy Patterson, the city’s principal planner. The medical pot shops will pay these total amounts only if they successfully navigate the application process by meeting the city’s new rules, she said. The city’s 39 registered medical pot shops will be sent to the Planning Commission or the zoning administrator dependi