[420 Girl]

CA - An extension of Monterey's moratorium on permits for medical marijuana dispensaries will be considered by the Monterey City Council when it meets Tuesday.
The council voted 4-1 Jan. 19 to adopt a 45-day moratorium on applications for medical marijuana dispensaries after the opening of a dispensary, MyCaregiver Inc., at 554 Lighthouse Ave.

City staff said the freeze on permits would give them time to prepare regulations for dispensaries and possibly to see what the courts rule for other cities.

City Attorney Deborah Mall and Assistant City Manager Fred Cohn, who served MyCaregiver with a cease-and-desist order, said the nature of the business was not fully disclosed when MyCaregiver applied for a business license. The application listed MyCaregiver Inc. as a "Health care Cooperative/Individual & Family Services."

Under the moratorium, any application by MyCaregiver for a license would not be processed until the moratorium expired, Cohn said.

San Jose attorney Jim Roberts, representing MyCaregiver, has told city officials that the dispensary intends to continue operation on the grounds the cease-and-desist order was improperly issued, that a business license or permit is not needed because it is a private cooperative, and that a state referendum — Proposition 215, passed by the voters in 1996 — and state legislation allow it.

The council will convene at 4 p.m. in its chambers at City Hall. The marijuana moratorium issue is scheduled for discussion at the council's 7 p.m. session.


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