Oakland votes to permit large marijuana farms

Oakland votes to permit large marijuana farms

http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2010/07/21/us_pot_city_cultivation_1/index.html

Small medicinal pot growers argue plants capable of producing 21,000
pounds per year would put them out of business

By EVELYN NIEVE
Jul 21, 2010

Oakland has moved closer to becoming the first city in the nation to
authorize wholesale pot cultivation.

The Oakland City Council voted 5-2 with one abstention late Tuesday
in favor of a plan to license four production plants where marijuana
would be grown, packaged and processed.

The vote came after more than two hours of public comment, with
speakers divided between those who opposed the measure -- largely on
the grounds that it would put small medical marijuana growers out of
business -- and those who said it would generate millions of dollars
for Oakland in taxes and sales and create hundreds of jobs.

The plants would not be limited in size -- one potential applicant
for a license wants to open a plant that would produce over 21,000
pounds of pot a year -- but they would be heavily taxed and regulated.

Those vying for one of the four licenses would have to pay $211,000
in annual permit fees, carry $2 million worth of liability insurance
and be prepared to devote up to 8 percent of gross sales to taxes.

Proponents of the measure also touted the possibility of Oakland
becoming the nation's cannabis capital, especially if California
voters approve the legalization of recreational marijuana in November.

"Do you want to be the "Silicon Valley of Cannabis?" said Jeff
Wilcox, a local businessman who wants to build "AgraMed," a 7.4-acre
plant with a bakery, a lab and 100,000 square feet of cultivation space.

But Stephen DeAngelo, executive director of Harborside Health Center,
the largest medical marijuana dispensary in the world, said small
growers were coming to him terrified that the ordinance would mean
the end of their livelihoods.

One of the co-sponsors of the ordinance, Rebecca Kaplan, said the
ordinance would not take effect until January, giving the council
time to come up with a plan for medium-sized growers.

Councilwoman Nancy Nadel said she worried about quality of the
product, wanted environmental protections and questioned why the
council was voting on the measure now if it wasn't going to take
effect until January.

The measure will go before the council one more time for a final
vote, but the outcome isn't expected to change.

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