[News Hawk]

The second cannabis club to open in Tracy has quietly lasted longer than the first one, but it might not be around much longer.

Matt Robinson, spokesman for the city, said the City Attorneys Office has ruled the Valley Wellness Center Collective, located at 130 W. 11th St., doesnt comply with city code.

The club has been open three weeks.

Its not about the law; its more about zoning and code enforcement, Robinson said. When they filled out their business license, they were very nonspecific in what they were going to do. That also raised the red flag with us.

Although there is nothing in the city code banning medical marijuana dispensaries, city of-ficials said the group misrepresented themselves on its business license. The collective said their activity would be retail sales conducted by a non-profit corporation.

A man identified only as James said he manages the collective and said it serves upward of 15 customers a day.

With shades drawn for privacy and a security guard at the locked front door, James said they were trying to be discreet to protect patient confidentiality.

Patients have no access to medicine from Sacramento to Bakersfield, James said, citing the lack of cannabis clubs in the Central Valley. What we do here is provide the patients medication in a safe and affordable manner.

He said they verify everyone who comes in to make sure they are a qualified patient with a prescription from a doctor.

At Amores Pizza Kitchen, the smells of marijuana and incense have penetrated the walls and spilled into the restaurant, manager Francisco Santana said, sometimes overpowering the scent of the food.

He said there have been no problems with his new neighbor and none of his customer have complained, but the new odor isnt good for families to have their children join them (for dinner).

A deputy district attorney for San Joaquin County said the way the county interprets the law, the retail sale of marijuana, even to those who have a doctors recommendation, is not legal.

Grow your own, thats what (Proposition) 215 says. The whole (issue) with dispensaries was completely out of the realm of Prop. 215, Phil Urie said earlier this year.

According to the Tracy City Clerks office, nothing relating to cannabis clubs has come before the City Council in at least the last 13 years.

Both Tracy clubs were the only such institutions in San Joaquin County.

The first Tracy club was snuffed out before it ever got rolling.

In July — three days after opening for business — the Opera House building manager asked the owners of the West Valley Resource Co-Op to move out and they were gone the next day.

In 1996, California voters passed Proposition 215 — the Compassionate Use Act — providing the seriously ill with the right to obtain and use marijuana for medical purposes.

According to the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, therapeutic uses from smoking the plant are well-documented. Marijuana provides relief from nausea, stimulates appetite and weight gain, and helps combat glaucoma, according the organizations Web site.

The issue has turned into a legal battle between states and the federal government. Last year, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that federal laws prohibiting the use of medical marijuana remain in effect regardless of state laws that permit its use.

Newshawk: Spliff Twister - 420 Girls
Source: Inside Bay Area
Pubdate: November 2006
Author: Mike Martinez
Copyright: 2006 ANG Newspapers
Contact: mmartinez@trivalley
Website: http://www.insidebayarea.com/