Local control triumph’s turning each major population hub into booming cannabis metropolis

Think of it as
legalization for some, but not all.

Millions of medical
and recreational cannabis users in the U.S. are increasingly moving from a
regime of total prohibition to a patchwork of “wet vs. dry” cities and counties—much like the end
of alcohol prohibition.

Rather than medical
cannabis access for all, or adult-access for all in legalization states, we’ve
seen the solidification of “local control.” Cannabis has become another issue
decided by the post-modern “city-state”—rich and/or powerful enough to defy
state or federal law, or both.

Today’s city-states
have historic, unprecedented powers to allow, deny or shape the face of legal
cannabis, experts say.  Eight out of 10 of
Colorado’s biggest cities have banned 21-and-over sales of legal cannabis. At
least 22 Colorado municipalities will vote on cannabis-related questions this
November.

“It’s really going to
be a reality wherever you go,” said Mason Tvert, communications director for
Marijuana Policy Project, architects of Colorado legalization. “A lot of people
would say, ‘That’s how it should be.’ If a locality—through its voters or
elected representatives—decides they don’t want certain businesses in town, they have every
right to prohibit them. This is an issue of zoning, community standards and
preferences.”

San Francisco has two
dozen licensed dispensaries, but driving during several hours to Fresno lands
you in a city that not only banned dispensaries, but the cultivation of a
single plant for medical use.  Michael
Green for the Fresno Cannabis Association said the new face of the drug war is
local bans on stores or cultivation.

“The bans are
starting to spread,” said Green. “The majority of California cities will follow
that zero tolerance approach if they can.”

At least 41 cities in
Washington ban medical or recreational stores, and another 80 or so have
moratoriums on the activity. About 40 percent of Washington has just said “No”
implementing Washington legalization Initiative 502.

“There is cause for
alarm,” said Dr. Dominic Corva for the Center on Cannabis and Social Policy, in
Washington. “There is a new wave of moratorium fever sweeping the state.”

More important than
retail, I-502 allows towns to reject small-scale cultivation. “It totally tilts the landscape toward [mega-producers].”

“This is really what
it comes down to—what kind of economy you can have and how democratic it can
be.”

CITY-STATE
MICRO-PROFILES

Denver, CO

Population: 649,495

# of outlets: 226
MMJ; 120 recreational

Cultivation epicenter
of Colorado that generates thousands of jobs and tens of millions of dollars in
tourism revenue.

Colorado Springs, CO

Population: 439,886

# of outlets: 85 MMJ
; 0 recreational

Colorado’s second
largest city bans 21-and-over stores, but taxes 85 MMJ dispensaries. Home of Christian ministry, Focus on the
Family mega-church, New Life Church. Army and Air Force bases ring the city.

Seattle, WA

Population: 652,405

# of outlets: dozens
of quasi-legal MMJ dispensaries; 21-32 licensed recreational (2 operational)

Of the 334 licensed
retail shops for Washington, Seattle gets the most due to its population.

Snohomish, WA

Population: 9,401

# of outlets: 0
recreational; 2 MMJ

Backstory: This tiny South
Eastern Washington state is a Mormon enclave. Mormon-controlled council voted
to ban recreational outlets in the city in October.

San Francisco, CA

Population: 837,442

# of outlets: 24
licensed MMJ dispensaries; dozens of unlicensed delivery services and
collectives

The City by the Bay
pioneered medical cannabis in the early ‘90s, and continues licensing new
dispensaries despite a three-year-old federal crackdown that’s claimed some of
its best and brightest.

Fresno, CA

Population: 509,039

# of outlets: 0

Fresno led the state
in rolling back Prop 215 rights after the California Supreme Court said cities
had sweeping power to ban MMJ dispensaries, collectives and cultivation.

San Jose, CA

Population: 998,537

# of outlets: Roughly
60 unlicensed MMJ dispensaries and dropping

With almost 100
dispensaries at its peak, San Jose zoned dispensaries out of most of the city
in Spring 2014, and mandated dispensaries grow their own supplies in city
limits.

Los Angeles, CA

Population: 3.884
million

# of outlets: Several
hundred unlicensed MMJ dispensaries (about 135 qualify for permits)

Los Angeles regulated
dispensaries at the ballot box with Measure D in 2013, which grandfathers in
about 100 clubs and bans the rest. The city continues to play “Whac-A-Mole”
with defiant dispensary operators, while collecting tens of millions of dollars
per year in sales and business taxes. Mayor Eric Garcetti endorses full
legalization in 2016.

Chicago, IL

Population: 2.695
million

# of cannabis
outlets: 13 possible MMJ dispensaries

Illinois’ nascent
medical cannabis program calls for state-licensed farms and stores distributed
throughout ten state police zones. Chicago might get 13 stores, mut many small
towns say no properties qualify for farm or shop zoning.

Phoenix, AZ

Pop.: 1.513 million

# of outlets: up to
19 MMJ dispensaries

Arizona medical
cannabis law encourages cities to allow dispensaries, lest under-served
patients grow their own. Capped at one-tenth the number of pharmacies, Phoenix
can license up to 19 dispensaries, 10 of which opened by Spring.

Portland, OR

Population: 609,456

# of cannabis
outlets: 68 state-approved MMJ dispensaries

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About 75 Oregon
cities and county have temporary or permanent bans on MMJ shops, but not
progressive Portland, home to 68 MMJ clubs.