City Council Split Over Pot Dispensary Ban

The City Council on Tuesday night voted 3-1 for preliminary approval of a ban on marijuana dispensaries in Laguna Niguel, despite the objections of more than three dozen residents.

Council members Joe Brown, Linda Lindholm and Paul Glaab voted for the ordinance; Councilman Robert Ming voted against. Gary Capata was absent.

The proposal faces another vote before the ordinance would go into effect.  The vote is set for May 3. 

The current ban on dispensaries, which expires July 7, was passed in 2009 as an interim ordinance only and has been extended twice.  The council made the ban temporary so it could conduct a zoning study to consider whether dispensaries should be allowed or prohibited permanently.

Fear of Crime

At Tuesday's meeting, Councilwoman Lindholm said she supported the ban because of exposure of youth to marijuana as a gateway drug; fear for the safety of the community; and because of increased crime—including an at a dispensary on Forbes Road.

But Laguna Niguel resident Joe Tanner said the ban could actually lead to more crime, since the ordinance would not prevent the growing of or possession of legally prescribed marijuana.

Tanner reasoned that patients who are forced to grow and store their marijuana in less secure locations could become more visible targets to thieves.

A Possible Alternative to the Ban?

Ming proposed that the city consider an alternative to the ban and assess the feasibility of allowing dispensaries to operate under the same rules as pharmacies. This, he said, would include enforcing a number of regulations, such as:

• Compliance with inspections

• Reporting requirements

• Audits

• Specific security measures to be approved by the city 

• Specific itemized counts of marijuana distributed

"There are far more dangerous drugs that people can obtain with a prescription at a regular pharmacy than what is sold in these clinics," Ming said.

As the crowd clapped, Ming told audience members to please hold their applause, saying that while he appreciated their support, he had to convince the other council members, not them.

"I couldn't disagree with you more on this issue," Lindholm said. "This type of regulation should be done at a state level, not a city level."

Forced to Act by a Deadline

Councilman Glaab was undecided and said he would like to see Ming's idea carried out but was unsure how its feasibility could be assessed before the May 3 vote. 

Glaab said the current moratorium's expiration date was his reason to support the permanent ban but hoped that in the future, Ming's idea or some other compromise might be reached so that patients would be able to access their medicine legally and safely. 

Local resident and medical marijuana patient Bill Lieber is hopeful that the City Council will reconsider its position over the next two weeks and reject the ordinance May 3. 

"I think that we have made some good progress here," Lieber said.  "The fact that they are even considering alternatives says that we have made progress."