Harborside to Operate San Leandro's First Marijuana Dispensery

The San Leandro City Council voted Tuesday to allow Harborside Health Center to open the city’s first medical marijuana dispensary, Harborside officials said. The city has been considering opening its first medical cannabis dispensary for the last two years and voted 6-1 Tuesday night to open Harborside San Leandro, to be run by a partnership between Harborside Health Center and Dark Heart Nursery, according to the dispensary.

Harborside operates the largest dispensary in the nation in Oakland and at a second location in San Jose. Dark Heart Nursery provides clones to area dispensaries.

“We’re very humbled and appreciative of the city staff of San Leandro” Harborside co-founder Steve DeAngelo said in a statement. “We’re honored to be awarded the license and look forward to introducing regulated cannabis to a previously underserved community.”

The future of Harborside could be murky, however. It has been facing an asset forfeiture lawsuit by the U.S. Department of Justice for the last three years and the city of Oakland recently lost a bid to block the lawsuit from proceeding.

The U.S. Attorney’s officials have said they are seeking the closure of Harborside because it is a large-scale commercial operation and in violation of federal law, despite complying with state and local law governing the distribution of medical cannabis.

By Bay City News