Pot Ordinance?
“The Los Angeles city council could vote on a much-anticipated medical marijuana ordinance Wednesday, ending a bottleneck that resulted in hundreds of pot dispensaries cropping up across the city. The draft ordinance would provide guidelines for the nation’s second largest city that would greatly reduce the number of marijuana storefronts and would push them out of neighborhoods and into industrial areas. While other California cities such as San Francisco, Oakland and West Hollywood have been able to regulate medical marijuana, Los Angeles has fumbled to adopt guidelines over the past two years. Authorities believe the delay has led to widespread abuse of a 1996 state ballot measure allowing marijuana for medicinal use. City officials estimate as many as 1,000 dispensaries operate in Los Angeles alone. Only four were around in 2005, when city officials first discussed a local medical marijuana law. Among the ordinance’s provisions is capping the number of dispensaries at 70. The move would shutter many of the shops no longer in compliance with city law.”