[420 Girl]

California - A decision by the Calistoga City Council on medical marijuana businesses will have to wait for an Orange County court ruling.

Calistoga leaders were scheduled to decide whether to follow the lead of other municipalities and place an all-out ban on medicinal marijuana businesses or to write their own ordinance tailoring the operation of local dispensaries. But they’ve decided to wait for the outcome of a case in which medical marijuana advocates are seeking to overturn a ban on pot dispensaries established by the city of Anaheim.
Late last year, Calistoga considered a ban on medicinal marijuana dispensaries and approved a temporary ordinance prohibiting the businesses from opening here. That ordinance expires in April.

The original ban on pot dispensaries locally was a pre-emptive action by the city council. No plans for opening such a business have been presented in Calistoga, but one city official said in an off-the-record comment that there have been whisperings that such a business might consider locating in Calistoga.
Meanwhile, the city of Napa is taking steps to enact a law that would allow one or more dispensaries within city limits.

On Tuesday, the Calistoga City Council faced the decision to place an outright ban on the businesses, which could potentially make the city vulnerable to lawsuits pushing for ingress into Calistoga, or extend the current ordinance for a year, giving the court time to provide guidance with a ruling on the Anaheim case.
Anaheim banned dispensaries in 2007, sparking a lawsuit by a medical marijuana patients collective, Qualified Patients Association.

On Tuesday, Calistoga’s city attorney, Michelle Kenyon, advised the council to extend its current ordinance banning the permitting of medical marijuana dispensaries for a year to reduce the city’s risk of exposure to litigation.

The council agreed it will likely do that before the law expires in April.

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