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On Tuesday, Sept. 11, Agents from the Inyo Narcotic Enforcement Team, with assistance from the Inyo County Sheriff’s Department, California Highway Patrol, U.S. Forest Service, and U.S. Bureau of Land Management, conducted a marijuana eradication operation in the Inyo National Forest.

The marijuana cultivation site was located on U.S. Forest Service land outside of Lone Pine.  The site appeared to have been abandoned by the cultivators days prior to the operation.  Agents eradicated approximately 4,000 marijuana plants with a potential street value of $10 million dollars.  Agents also removed large loads of garbage and rubber hose left behind by the cultivators.  A CHP helicopter assisted the eradication team in extracting the marijuana plants and garbage.

The best part of the press release, however, came when the Inyo Narcotic Enforcement Team offered its clues that you may have come across a marijuana cultivation site. Our favorite: Individuals armed with rifles out of hunting season. Yep. Might want to hightail it out of there.

Dispensaries ban shakes LA

A major political earthquake shook the City of Los Angeles on Tuesday, when the City Council voted unanimously to ban all pot dispensaries, except any already open as of 2007. Under the ban, 762 dispensaries registered in the city will be sent letters ordering them to shut down immediately. Those that don’t comply may face legal action from the city.

Medical marijuana activists lambasted the decision. Some have already threatened lawsuits, while others are proposing a ballot initiative to overturn the ban. “We’re not going to make this easy for the city of Los Angeles,” Don Duncan, California director of Americans for Safe Access, told the LA Times.

The new ordinance will allow patients and their caregivers to grow and share marijuana in groups of three people or fewer. But activists complain that few patients have the time or skills for that, with one dispensary owner saying it costs at least $5,000 to grow the plant at home.

The ban received a last-minute show of support from Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and LA Police Chief Charlie Beck.

Council also voted to draw up a separate ordinance that would in effect grant immunity to shops that existed before a 2007 moratorium on new dispensaries. Several council members indicated they’ll vote against that motion, not wanting to give the public “false hope” that the ban would not be enforced.

Council members were adamant that something had to be done to reduce the number of dispensaries, which they said outnumber the city’s Starbucks coffee shops two to one. Beck, who appeared before the council, said dispensaries could be hot spots for crime, citing burglaries, armed robberies and killings. In a letter to lawmakers, he said most pot shops are “for-profit businesses engaged in the sale of recreational marijuana to healthy young adults.”

But those who support dispensaries say the ban will simply drive distribution of marijuana underground. Steven Lubell, an attorney who represents several of the city’s original dispensaries, predicted, “It’s going to go to a darker side.”

The Obama administration, at first supportive of the clinics, recently reversed its position, and now takes issue with both dispensaries and any legalization of marijuana. That has led to action by Attorney General Eric Holder and the Department of Justice to shut down some medical marijuana dispensaries in California and Colorado. While feds have raided dispensaries in other California towns, and both county and local governments mull ordinances both for and against allowing dispensaries, Mammoth’s clinics have thus far gone untouched.

Earlier this year, Steve Klassen closed his Green Mammoth medical marijuana operation in what might have been a pre-emptive move in light of the federal crackdown. Robert Calvert’s Mammoth Lakes Wellness dispensary, however, is still in business. Mammoth’s Town Council recently approved permit applications to be filed for the second of two permits allowed under a voter-approved medical marijuana dispensary town ordinance. -Geisel/Huffington Post

But application fees have quadrupled

Applications are now being accepted for a permit to operate a Medical Marijuana Cooperative in Mammoth Lakes. The Town’s Municipal Code authorizes up to two permits for Medical Marijuana Cooperatives and there is currently only one available permit.

Last week, Council voted 4-1 (Wood dissented) to hike the Medical Marijuana Cooperative permit application fee from $300 to $1,209. Police Chief Dan Watson cited underestimating the amount of hours required to process permits as the reason.

Municipal Code Chapter 5.38 addresses the requirements and procedures for applying the permitting process. Medical Marijuana Cooperatives may only be located in certain areas. Potential applicants are encouraged to review Chapter 5.38 so that they have an understanding of the process and the acceptable locations. Chapter 5.38 is available at http://library.municode.com/HTML/16632/level2/TIT5BUTALIRE_CH5.38MEMACO.html#TOPTITLE

Applications may be picked up at the Police Station during normal business hours, Monday through Friday. Completed applications must be turned in no later than 5 p.m. on Friday, July 16. All completed applications will be processed and reviewed pursuant to Chapter 5.38. Those applications deemed qualified by the Police Department will be submitted to the Town’s Community Development Department (CDD).

After the Police Department submits the qualified applicant(s) to the CDD, those qualified applicant(s) will then be required to submit an application for a use permit to the CDD for consideration by the Planning Commission. A public hearing is required for Planning Commission consideration, which requires notification to be mailed to the properties within 300 feet of the proposed Medical Marijuana Cooperative location. The Planning Commission will only be able to approve one qualified Medical Marijuana Cooperative consistent with the Municipal Code.

Please see the Medical Marijuana Cooperatives Fact Sheet for additional information regarding the permit process at http://www.ci.mammoth-lakes.ca.us/index.aspx?nid=476 -MLPD Press Release/Kirkner

Next year’s budget is projected to generate $550,000 in available cash and the Town expects to generate that amount annually going forward. The Town may use that cash to leverage a bond to settle the judgment with Mammoth Lakes Land Acquisition. On Wednesday night, June 6, Marysheva Martinez said that was only one of several possible scenarios, and that while the $550,000 surplus is to be wholly dedicated to the MLLA judgment, how it will be used is yet to be determined.

A public hearing on and adoption of the proposed budget is planned for June 20 in Suite Z at 6 p.m.

In other news, Council voted 4-1 (Wood dissented) to hike the Medical Marijuana Cooperative permit application fee from $300 to $1,209. Police Chief Dan Watson cited underestimating the amount of hours required to process permits as the reason.

The initial grading contract was awarded for beginning work on the Whitmore Track Project. Still $193,000 short of being fully funded, hopes are that a Measure R application being reviewed by Council, and other measures being evaluated by High Sierra Striders and Town staff can be worked into the next phase of the project to make up the deficit.

Council delayed eliminating the Airport and Mobility Commissions, and merging them into a single Transportation Commission pending a clearer picture of who will reapply for any open seats on the 5- or 7-member body. “There’s lots of talent [on the Airport Commission] and I’d hate to lose that,” commented Mobility Commission Chair Sandy Hogan.

Councilmember Rick Wood mentioned the delays in getting the Lakes Basin trash and restrooms, and some of the camping open sooner, given the early summer season. Wood said he is working with the Forest Service to bring control of those facilities back to Mammoth. Currently, reservations, and restrooms, trash and barricade openings are dictated by schedules set in either out of county or out of state locales.

I spoke to Steve Sheffield of Heritage Propane, a corporate spokesman based out of Massachusetts, a few weeks ago about the proposed acqusition of Heritage by AmeriGas.

Heritage is the parent company of Turner Propane. If the Federal Trade Commission approves the deal, AmeriGas would essentially have a propane monopoly in Mammoth Lakes.

Sheffield says he understands concerns from locals who wonder how a monopoly would affect their gas bills. But like a good corporate spokesman, he talked about “greater efficiencies” that would be realized by a potential deal.

The biggest component of price, he said, are external factors relating to the wholesale price which have nothing to do with local conditions.

Local businessman John Vereuck scoffed at Sheffield’s downplay. “My guess is we can expect a 30 to 40% price hike within a year if this deal goes through. What’s to stop them?”

According to Vereuck, he believes AmeriGas overpaid to purchase Rock Creek Energy in 2009. Rock Creek was the company which built the backbone delivery system in Mammoth and until its acquisition, had charged a fixed rate to the other two companies (Amerigas and Turner) to deliver via its system in order to recoup its lay-in and maintenance costs.

Problem is, said Vereuck, those costs were nebulous and never truly delineated.

“What goes up does not go down,” he explained. “Once a company makes back an investment, does the price ever go down? I’ve never seen it.”

Vereuck believes a monopoly may provide AmeriGas the means to obfuscate like never before.

If the deal goes through, is there any likely competitor on the horizon? I spoke to Eastern Sierra Propane’s Founder and Co-Owner Tom Sigler about that this week. He said he’d recently received a call from Mono County Supervisor Hap Hazard about this very topic, as Hazard is concerned about a potential propane monopoly.

“At this point, nothing seems concrete,” said Sigler. “The government could step in [and prevent the merger], so until we know for sure, we won’t make a decision … I never make plans [based] on speculation.”

Sigler did, however, express some reservations about doing business in Mammoth based upon personal experience. “At one point in time, about two years ago, I called the Town of Mammoth Lakes to get an application for a business license,” he said. “Within 15 seconds, I was told that we [the Town of Mammoth] get a percentage of your income.” That a fee is collected by the Town for every drop of propane sold in Mammoth Lakes.

“I just didn’t like the way that sounded,” said Sigler, who dropped the idea of getting a business license.

MLH foreclosure and government handouts

At the final regular Town Council meeting for 2011 (the Dec. 21 meeting has been canceled), Executive Director of Mammoth Lakes Housing, Pam Hennarty presented the recently updated Mammoth Lakes Housing Needs Assessment. According to Hennarty, the study conducted by RRC Associates, Inc. “reaffirmed what we already knew – there is still a housing need.”

Mayor Pro Tem Matthew Lehman was less than thrilled to hear this outcome and questioned the surveys that were used to gather data for the study.

“I took one of the surveys and the questions seemed to be geared toward what type of housing do we need, not whether or not we need housing,” Lehman said. “You can get any answer that you want if you ask the question in a certain way.

“You don’t have demand presented here,” he continued. “Government can’t afford to continue to pay for everything. We need to let the markets do what they are suppose to do and stop the government handouts.”

As if to prove his point, Hennarty confirmed with The Sheet that MLH is currently in default on one of its two office spaces in the Sherwin Plaza Shopping Center on Old Mammoth Road.

“We received our default letter on Monday,” Hennarty told The Sheet. MLH plans to downsize from the two office spaces into the single office space where they are still current.

“The town cuts hit us hard. We have been trying to negotiate the terms but it hasn’t worked out,” Hennarty continued. “We are hoping to deed it back in lieu of foreclosure, but that’s probably not going to happen.”

Town Council member and MLH Board member Rick Wood agreed with Hennarty. “Budget cuts have real consequences,” he said, referring to the cuts made to MLH when the Town tightened its belt last summer. MLH’s operational revenue comes from the Town. “We couldn’t negotiate a loan modification so we can’t afford to be in the space.”

The man holding the note on the loan, John Vereuck, was not terribly pleased with MLH’s decision. He told The Sheet that MLH stopped paying the note before negotiations for a modification had ever really started.

The updated study is available at www.mammothlakeshousing.com or by calling MLH at 760.934.4740.

Medical Marijuana lessens traffic fatalities

According to the Wall Street Journal, a recent study claims that medical marijuana laws reduce traffic fatalities. The study, “Medical Marijuana Laws, Traffic Fatalities and Alcohol Consumption,” D. Mark Anderson and Daniel I. Rees, Institute for the Study of Labor working paper (November 2011) examines federal data before and after 1996 when the passage of medical marijuana laws began. Today, 15 states plus the District of Columbia have legalized medical marijuana. According to the WSJ article, “researchers found a nearly 9% decrease in overall traffic fatalities. (That figure took into account trends in neighboring states.) Virtually the only reason for the decline was a drop in alcohol-related traffic deaths.”

Basically the study concluded that in states where marijuana was legal, people tended to smoke more weed and consume less alcohol. “The authors suggest that pot users may be more aware of their intoxication and correspondingly less reckless, and that using the drug at home, as opposed to bars, might be another factor,” the article concluded.

Spike Todd

Longtime local and owner of Mammoth Liquor Spike Todd was life-flighted out of Eastern Sierra Regional Airport in Bishop at 12:50 a.m. Friday, Dec. 2 to the intensive care unit at Renown Regional Medical Center in Reno, Nev.

According to posts by his brother, Bob, at http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/spiketodd, “Spike went to the doctor Monday and was diagnosed with a sinus infection. He had covered the Bishop football game Friday night and seemed fine. He met his son, David, in Kern Valley Saturday and returned to Mammoth. He told me he had a headache for several days, but it had subsided a bit by Monday.

Still, he was weak and sick and didn’t work last week. Deb [partner] insisted he go the hospital Thursday night, and it was quickly determined he needed critical care. The doctors later said if Deb had not brought Spike in he would not have made it overnight.

The winds were too high to fly out of Mammoth-Yosemite Airport, so he was ambulanced to Bishop, and then flown to Reno.

The cause of his condition is streptococcus pneumoniae (I looked on the fax results about the blood culture).

He was diagnosed with fluid in one lung, along with kidney and liver failure. He suffered a mild heart attack Saturday morning.

A cat scan would help pinpoint the location of the problem in his lung, but he’s not strong enough for that yet.”

Bob’s latest post, dated Dec. 7, stated, “Spike is having a good day, nurses and Dr. Terry say. Fever came down and is being managed; breathing issues are better. He’s still fighting a tough fight, but some optimism today making us all feel good. Great nurses Melissa today and Kelly last night are keeping Spike as comfortable as can be.”

Visit the caringbridge.org website above to keep up to date on Spike’s condition or to send him get-well wishes. If you don’t already have one, you’ll have to sign up for an account, but it only takes about two seconds.

Klassen shuts down medical marijuana dispensary

Medical marijuana patients who were clients of Green Mammoth, one of Mammoth Lakes’ two medicinal cannabis dispensaries, were surprised to learn of the sudden closure of the business late last month.

Reports indicate that on Nov. 22, Green Mammoth proprietor Steve Klassen decided to cease operation at the business, located at 94 Laurel Mountain Rd. Klassen was a key part in passage of Measure M in June 2010, which 56% of Town voters approved. The ordinance made it legal for a maximum of two medical marijuana dispensaries to operate within the Town of Mammoth Lakes.

Klassen declined to comment on his decision, but a statement posted on the door of the business read as follows: “Due to circumstances beyond our control, Green Mammoth Natural Healing Collective is now closed. It has been our pleasure to serve our patients over the last year. We are truly sorry that we cannot continue to be able to provide for your medical needs. Please support all efforts to end cannabis prohibition. Please never forget what we made possible here.”

As early as this past February, The Sheet reported that the Mono County DA’s office had explored ways to shut down the dispensaries over various concerns. Local Mammoth Lakes lawmakers expressed concerns at the time that the dispensaries were overstepping their “specific, limited purpose” – that of providing medical marijuana to members, and using it as a platform to spread the gospel of marijuana to an “entourage of stoners.” Green Mammoth disputed those claims, saying it was in complete compliance with local laws, and revealing that the average age of its patients was between 34 and 37, the youngest 21, the oldest 78.

In October, federal prosecutors launched a crackdown on pot dispensaries in California, and several other states with similar medical marijuana laws. Stores were told in no uncertain terms they must shut down in 45 days or face

criminal charges and confiscation of their property, even if they were operating legally under the state’s 15-year-old medical marijuana law (AB 215, aka Prop 215).

The feds have utilized a number of tactics to bring pressure to bear on several medical marijuana operations statewide, including having the Internal Revenue Service rescind tax breaks and other deductions for such operations.

“I’m very disappointed in President Obama’s administration reversing its position and letting the DOJ run rampant spending millions of dollars on this while we have debt and recession,” commented former Town of Mammoth Lakes Planning Commissioner Tony Barrett. Barrett helped write the language for Measure M.

The irony, Barrett added, is that [Green Mammoth] followed the state’s Prop 215 requirements to the letter and beyond, yet the feds and attorneys are finding backdoor ways to get at this. The result, he posited, could push medical marijuana patients back into a back-alley abortion type scenario, which is what Medical Marijuana laws were designed to avoid.

One Green Mammoth patient spoke to The Sheet on condition of anonymity, saying they sympathize with Klassen.

“I immediately had an anxiety attack and started crying, and thought, ‘I’m going to have to risk my life to feel better.’ It’s dumb politics. It’s unfair that the small man has to take the brunt of politics that’s done in the big umbrella that hangs over our heads every day,” the patient said. “I work 40 hours a week, so I’m not jobless just vegging on the sofa playing Wii and hitting a bong. I rely on it to function in society, as do millions of people with cancer and other maladies. And the big pharmaceuticals companies are lobbying to have control over a natural plant we can grow ourselves, just so we’ll be forced to buy their products. If smoking brussel sprout leaves cured cancer, [Big Pharma] would be monopolizing those, too.”

Mammoth Lakes Police Chief Dan Watson confirmed that Klassen would not be renewing his permit for operation, which expires in mid-December. Chief Watson added that during the time Green Mammoth had been in operation, no citations had been issued or arrests made at the facility.

Mammoth Lakes Wellness (now the only dispensary in Mammoth) owner Robert Calvert said he has submitted a permit renewal application to the Town. In the meanwhile, he prefers to simply let the attorneys do their work on the matter. “There are a lot of very smart attorneys working on this,” Calvert commented, “and I’m just not as qualified [as they are] to comment on it.”

On Nov. 29, Mono County District Attorney George Booth’s office met with Eastern District U.S. Attorney Ben Wagner, the United States Attorney for the Eastern District to discuss the Federal law enforcement position on medical marijuana store fronts, dispensaries and growing operations, that are covered under California’s Medical Marijuana laws.

In a summary of the meeting from Mono Assistant District Attorney Tim Kendall, Wagner reiterated his standing position that his office’s interest is “enforcing federal criminal law, not prosecuting seriously sick people,” and has “no intention of interfering with medical marijuana patient rights or their legal access to medical marijuana.”

That said, Wagner’s opinion is that all commercial marijuana operations, including marijuana grows, marijuana stores and mobile delivery services are illegal and generate huge profits and are no more than criminal enterprises. Wagner’s enforcement action would consist of “letters of warning to owners and property holders that their marijuana activity is illegal and subjects them to further action if continued.”

Not only was a June Lake resident illegally growing marijuana in his residence, but the grow operation had damaged the home to such a degree that the Mono County Building Department had to red tag the residence upon the discovery of the grow.

On Tuesday, April 26, at approximately 8 a.m., a Mono County Sheriff’s Deputy was following up on a report of a suspected illegal marijuana grow in June Lake. Deputies and MONET agents arrived at the residence of Timothy Marsh, age 27, of June Lake. Upon entering the residence, deputies found numerous marijuana plants and other supplies used for growing marijuana. It was determined that Marsh was not in compliance with current marijuana laws in terms of growing marijuana in his residence. As stated, the residence was red tagged as a result of the damage from the marijuana grow. Marsh was taken to the Bridgeport Jail where he is currently in custody pending an investigation with the District Attorney’s office. -MCSD/LAK

David Cruz

Late in the evening on Tuesday, Jan. 18 Mono County Sheriff’s Department Deputies stopped a vehicle traveling in an erratic manner, northbound on U.S. 395 in Coleville.  At approximately 11:45 p.m. the deputy made contact with the two individuals inside the vehicle, identified as David Cruz, age 32, and Bernadin Estriplet, age 28, both of June Lake.

Upon contact, the Deputy noticed a strong odor of burnt marijuana coming from inside the vehicle and asked both parties to exit the vehicle.  After a search of the vehicle, a medium backpack was found in the trunk containing four glass mason jars each containing marijuana buds over 1 oz; a large plastic bag containing over six ounces of marijuana leaves; and other marijuana paraphernalia. Cruz and Estriplet were arrested and booked in the Mono County Jail where they are currently in custody for the possession and intent to sell marijuana. -MCSD

Bernadin Estriplet

L-R: Robert Calvert, owner, with Stephanie Giangiordano and John Paulson (Photo:Geisel)

Medical marijuana cooperative members had reason to give some additional thanks this past holiday weekend. Robert Calvert’s Mammoth Lakes Wellness became the first marijuana dispensary in Mammoth to open its doors on Nov. 27.

Steve Klassen’s Green Mammoth, to be located in the KMMT building on Laurel Mountain Road, is expected to be open by next weekend.

Calvert and Klassen were granted the two available permits by the Town of Mammoth Lakes on Oct. 27.

Calvert’s shop, in the Mammoth Luxury Outlet Mall on Main Street, still has some minor finish and decorating work to be done, but saw its first patients during the holiday. A legal medical marijuana cooperative, as specified under the provisions of the State’s Compassionate Use Act and Senate Bill 420, as well as the provisions outlined in Measure M, Calvert said the dispensary’s mission statement is simple: provide “safe, legal access for patients to acquire medication.”

He sees Mammoth Lakes Wellness as a way to remove barriers for patients, many of whom don’t have the space, money or time to cultivate their own cannabis. “There’s a significant amount of time, money and learning curve to growing,” he observed. “People can enjoy growing it, but up here, you’ve got people who rent or are second homeowners, and for year-round growing you need indoor climates, which are costly and require permitting.”

Calvert also pointed out that most patients may not medicate enough to justify growing. Even ML Wellness doesn’t grow anything on-site. Rather, the cooperative gets all of its product from what Calvert said are all “qualified cooperative members.”

The co-op will offer other options for patients who don’t smoke, but still have need of the medication. “We’ll have a full range of products, including tinctures, extracts, oils and edibles,” he said.

By “edibles” he doesn’t mean pot brownies made in the oven at home. Any edibles at the co-op, be they cookies, muffins, brownies or even donuts, will be made in licensed, commercial kitchens that are permitted by the Mono County Health Department.

No plants will be on-site, but the dispensary will have clones, or plant cuttings, available for cooperative members. Such clones are not unlike grapevine cuttings used in the wine industry for crafting new varietals.

Cannabis has a long, storied and controversial history, and the plant has, ironically, been legal in the United States longer than it’s been illegal. “It used to be in every doctor’s medical bag,” Calvert points out. Popular belief is that cannabis became illegal due to its widespread use among the countercultures of jazz musicians, beatniks and hippies, but reality is that big business may have been the culprit.

In the early 20th century, publisher William Randolph Hearst reportedly was heavily tied to Dupont Chemical’s introduction of nylon in the marketplace. As the story goes, large-scale cotton growers joined Hearst and Dupont in a concerted effort to keep hemp from becoming competitive. Cannabis proponents think that the powerful collective launched a very effective demonizing campaign against the plant, one of the best examples of which is the propaganda-ridden, educational-turned-cult classic movie, “Reefer Madness.”

Marijuana bounced back briefly in the late ‘60s and early ‘70s, before becoming illegal under the Controlled Substances Act passed during the Nixon administration.

Years later, following passage of Prop 215 and SB 420, Mono County found itself in an odd predicament: without a state-mandated medical marijuana program, it was in violation of state law. Mammoth’s 420 Medicard, the only such office in Mono and Inyo counties that can issue doctors’ recommendations, helped cleared up that problem along with the County. Misinformation about it still persists though. For example, some critics insist that once you’re in the program, you become part of state tracking database. Calvert, whose brother Scott runs 420 Medicard, dismisses such claims. “All records are kept under doctor-patient confidentiality. There’s no state database,” he stated. “If some agency runs a drivers license check, it won’t show whether you have a 420 card or not.”

He’s frank when it comes to certain public misgivings about his own business. “I recognize that some people may have a problem with it. To those opposed, all I can say is, ‘We’ll be here for you if you need us.’”

Calvert was ebullient in his praise for how Measure M was handled. “I’m very pleased that Mammoth did it the right way,” he opined. “The Town wrote the ordinance, went through the whole public process, and got the Town, inspectors, fire department, police department and everyone on board. Mammoth did a fantastic job.”

He particularly applauded the work put in by Klassen, Town Planner Sandra Moberly, Mammoth Lakes Police Chief Dan Watson and Sgt. Marc Moskowitz, and the Town’s Planning Commission members.

… As opposed to Southern California, which lately has found itself in a medical marijuana mess.

“The early ‘business’ model was basically, ‘Let’s open and see what happens,’ essentially the reverse logic of how we did it up here,” Calvert explained. “You had them popping up by the dozens, on every street corner.” Earlier this year, grandfather clauses dated as of November 2007 went into effect in Los Angeles.

When he took office in 2009, President Barack Obama loosened regulations on cooperatives. “Then they evaluated the remaining businesses to see if they met the new laws, like are they 500 feet from a school instead of 1,000 feet.” That led to lawsuits and a raft of closures for various infractions.

Calvert said that’s to be expected. “Places that are getting raided and shut down are breaking the law,” he said. “We don’t have that kind of mess here. That position is echoed by Calvert’s operational staff, John Paulson and Stephanie Giangiordano, who operated a co-op in Long Beach for the past three years.

“We saw that whole mess coming, and were one of the businesses that tried to work with the city and get all our paperwork and permits in order, but it still took Long Beach two years to start catching up,” Paulson said. “It was done all backwards. Then we came up here, and it was completely different. Everything was done up front, the right way.”

Legislatively, since Republican Steve Cooley recently conceded the California’s Attorney General race to Democrat Kamala Harris, Calvert said he doesn’t think much will change, except perhaps on a municipality-by-municipality level. Nationally, he said, if Obama loses in 2012, things COULD change, but added it depends who’s elected. Arizona, he cited as an example, recently legalized medical marijuana and that state’s governed by Jan Brewer, a Republican.

As to Klassen, who will soon open his own dispensary, Calvert said the two may be viewed as competition, which he called “the nature of doing business,” but said their shared goal is the same. “We’re trying to do the right thing for the community,” he said.

For more on Mammoth Lakes Wellness, visit www.mammothlakeswellness.com or call 760.924.2299. Find out more about 420 Medicard at www.420Medicard-MammothLakes.com.

Commissioner Clark reviews marijuana products brought by medical marijuana co-op applicant Steve Klassen at Wednesday’s hearing. Psst. “If you see a chance, take it” Sharon! (Photo: Kirkner)

This week marijuana was waved in the faces of Mono County citizens, whether they wanted a toke or not.

On Wednesday, the Mammoth Lakes Planning Commission took a look at three applications for medical marijuana cooperative use permits. In addition, California voters should have been preparing to take up the issue of whether or not to legalize marijuana for individuals with Proposition 19 on the ballot this coming Tuesday, Nov. 2.

“We have to do what’s best today, Oct. 27, 2010,” said Planning Commissioner Elizabeth Tenney when the issue was raised at Wednesday’s meeting as to how Prop 19 would change the function of medical marijuana cooperatives in the future

On the table before the Commission were three medical marijuana cooperative applicants: Steve Klassen with Green Mammoth, Robert Calvert with Mammoth Lakes Wellness, and Dagmar Zila with Range of Light Wellness. Even before Wednesday’s meeting, it was a foregone conclusion that Calvert’s and Zila’s proposals could not both be approved, because the Measure M ordinance, approved by voters in June, states that the two cooperatives allowed in Mammoth must be 500 feet apart. Zila and Calvert were both proposing to place their co-ops in the Luxury Outlet Mall a mere 30 feet from one another. Klassen proposed to put his on Laurel Mountain Road in the KMMT building.

Each applicant had their own, distinct issues. A letter from Mono County Mental Health Director Ann Gimpel had originally been sent in against Klassen’s location on Laurel Mountain, because the Mental Health Department already had a Wellness Center for its patients in the same building and did not believe the two uses mixed well. Gimpel, however, withdrew her letter prior to the Commission meeting. The Mental Health Department says it now plans to move the location of its Wellness Center.

ADA (handicap) access was another issue with Klassen’s location because it is on the second floor and is only accessible by stairs. Town Attorney Peter Tracy deemed this issue not one that fell under the Commission’s purview, but Klassen stated he had plans to deal with the issue nonetheless.

“We can take the medicine down to people’s cars or we can carry members up the stairs,” Klassen said.

During his presentation Klassen pointed out that it was nice to finally see that the marijuana stigma was being erased and that it could be openly discussed at Commission meetings. He thinks, however, that every day brings something new in the world of medicinal marijuana and that, “It is still more acceptable to be a gay man in this town [Mammoth] than to be a marijuana smoker.”

Klassen hoped that if awarded a use permit, his medical marijuana co-op would be a stepping stone for eventually curing cancer. He tried to end his presentation by quoting a Steve Winwood song, but could not remember all of the lines.

“It’s that short-term memory loss. What can I say?” Klassen said.

Calvert, whose brother Scott Calvert is the Program Director of Mammoth 420, which interviews clients for a doctor in Southern California who issues medical marijuana recommendations and cards, claimed that his co-op would include a good neighbor policy that would include a safe and healthy neighborhood environment.

“My word is gold until I soil it,” Robert said. “I give you my word.”

Robert suggested that his brother come before the community to explain how Mammoth 420 functions in order to further erase the marijuana stigma.

Robert also pointed out that on the contrary to popular opinion the co-ops would not “kill it,” financially.

“The co-ops are not going to be cash cows,” he said. “I actually question whether or not we’ll even be able to make it with all the expenses involved.”

The final applicant, Dagmar Zila, was unable to attend the public hearing because she and her husband had made a prior commitment to be teaching a nutritional seminar. Their son, Cory, as well as their family friend Ed Soule, attended on their behalf.

The Zilas were presenting the Range of Light Wellness Center, which expanded upon the idea of a co-op.

“They [the Zilas] are looking at a complete wellness center that would include yoga and nutrition,” Soule explained.

When Commission Chair Tony Barrett asked how the Zilas planned to keep those under the age of 21 away from the co-op if they were offering yoga right next to it, Cory clarified, that the additional wellness options would be additional benefits for members of the co-op only.

“We’re into wellness, not just selling marijuana,” Soule added.

During the initial application review by the Mammoth Lakes Police Department, it had been determined that one of the officers originally proposed to be part of the Zilas co-op had been arrested and convicted of a marijuana-related offense. The Zilas had to remove this officer in order to have their application accepted.

During public comment, no one spoke in opposition to any of the applicants. One resident, however, gave general testimony. Brian Jaegers explained that he and his wife live on Shady Rest Road, which is just behind the KMMT building where Klassen was looking to put his co-op.

“Just make sure that the business owners know who their neighbors are,” Jaegers said, in reference to the pedestrians and children frequently walking through the area.

In the end, the Commission approved Klassen’s and Calvert’s applications. It debated over whether or not to have Calvert put his entrance to his co-op on the backside of the building on Center Street so that it would not be considered a Main Street storefront. During workshops regarding the co-ops it seemed that the community was somewhat opposed  to the visibility of these businesses from Main Street.

All of the Commissioners, except Tenney, believed this was not a serious problem and that it would wreak more havoc to put the entrance on the backside due to parking and snow storage issues. Barrett also thought it would make the members of the co-op feel like second-class citizens if they were forced to use the back door. Tenney voted against Calvert’s application because she wanted the entrance at the back.

Klassen was also a bit irked by Calvert’s location, as he too believed the community and the Town had not wanted the co-ops on Main Street.

“I thought we were trying to make these [co-ops] invisible,” Klassen said, adding that if he had known Main Street locations were OK he would have applied to put his co-op in the Kentucky Fried Chicken building.

Commission Vice Chair Jay Deinken voted against all of the co-op applications in their current form because they did not adequately address the purpose of a non-profit medical marijuana cooperative.

“Steve has made his application all about politics, but that’s not the issue; you should be able to have your opinion and I should be able to have mine,” Deinken said. He was also concerned that the Zilas were trying to roll another business into the co-op and that Calvert’s business plan did not allow members of his co-op to vote directors out if they were unhappy with the way the co-op was being run.

Therefore, Klassen’s application was approved 4-1, and Calvert’s 3-2.

It is unclear how Prop 19 will affect co-ops in the future, but both Deinken and Klassen seemed to think the passage would eventually remove the need for co-ops.

“There would be no need for a permit for anything,” Deinken said in an interview prior to the meeting. “The co-ops could continue doing business just not under the same constraints they have now because they would be out the window.”

Klassen agreed at the meeting stating that “Prop 19 is the opposite of what co-op owners would want, but I recommend voting yes for it anyway.”