cannabisnews.com: New Limits in Oakland for Medical Pot Clubs New Limits in Oakland for Medical Pot Clubs Posted by CN Staff on February 05, 2004 at 10:07:39 PT By Jim Herron Zamora, Chronicle Staff Writer Source: San Francisco Chronicle Oakland will issue business licenses to four nonprofit medical marijuana vendors and force eight others to close or face possible prosecution. The new limits adopted by the Oakland City Council will break up the cluster of downtown marijuana clubs -- collectively known as "Oaksterdam" -- by forcing them to operate at least 1,000 feet apart. During a six-hour meeting Tuesday night, the council voted to adopt new regulations on marijuana clubs, which have recently sprouted on the northern edge of downtown Oakland. Effective June 1, Oakland medical marijuana clubs operating under state Proposition 215, approved by voters in 1996, must apply for business licenses. The city will select four vendors from among the applicants. "We support compassionate use for patients but we needed to set up some rules that work for the entire city,'' said Council President Ignacio De La Fuente, who co-sponsored the measure with Councilwoman Jean Quan. Both of them agreed to several amendments to the proposal at the request of critics, including councilwomen Nancy Nadel and Jane Brunner, who both ultimately voted for the measure. Councilwoman Desley Brooks was the only opponent, saying she felt that the city was forcing the plan onto the medical marijuana community. Cannabis patients will be forbidden to smoke pot or consume marijuana brownies or cookies in clubs where they buy it. The council agreed to consider allowing patients to eat marijuana-laced food on site. Snipped: Complete Article: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2004/02/05/BAGJE4PFL81.DTL Source: San Francisco Chronicle (CA)Author: Jim Herron Zamora, Chronicle Staff Writer Published: Thursday, February 5, 2004Copyright: 2004 San Francisco Chronicle - Page A - 19 Contact: letters sfchronicle.comWebsite: http://www.sfgate.com/chronicle/Related Articles & Web Sites:OCBChttp://www.rxcbc.org/California NORMLhttp://www.canorml.org/Medicinal Cannabis Research Linkshttp://freedomtoexhale.com/research.htmNew Marijuana Laws Spur New Questionshttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread18299.shtmlCouncil Looks To Trim Number of Pot Clubshttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread18215.shtml Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help Post Comment