LA MESA, Calif. — The La Mesa City Council on Tuesday unanimously approved adding recreational marijuana sales to medical marijuana shops in an effort to take advantage of the marijuana industry to help revitalize the city.
Currently, the Grove Medical Marijuana Dispensary is listed as the one and only legal dispensary in the City of La Mesa. It legally sells CBD products of all kinds.
"If you have a medical issue, you can most likely find a cure for it here. We offer edibles, tinctures, creams, flour. We’ve got brownies. We’ve got chocolate bars,” said Sean McDermott.
The Grove has been open for 14 months, and McDermott says he plays by the rules – paying over $1 million to be licensed. Other La Mesa shops, according to him, do not.
“For us, it is super frustrating because we are working hard every day. We pay a tremendous amount of taxes," he said.
The La Mesa City Council said 17 shops have already applied or been approved for a permit to operate as a co-location to sale medical and recreational cannabis. A shop will not be able to solely sale recreational marijuana.
“For many years, there would be these pop-up shops, or these sketch illegal dispensaries that ruined the neighborhoods,” said Bill Baber, La Mesa City Councilmember.
For that reason, the city removed 26 illegal pot shops in the last three years.
On Tuesday night, the City Council also made an amendment which grandfathers in the 17 applications, permit holders. This impacts Fresh Selection a marijuana dispensary permitted and scheduled to open next month.
Under Measure U (medical marijuana sales) it was 1,000 feet based on the traveled path to a school, but under the new ordinance (1,000 feet radius) it was closer to a school.
The City Council wanted to make it fair for all the shops who applied or were already permitted before the ordinance was approved.
Erik Egelko is a La Mesa realtor who supports local leaders’ push to revitalize La Mesa by getting tax dollars from legal dispensaries.
“The City Council has two separate proposals to divert funds to rehabilitate west La Mesa,” said Egelko.
“We are trying to get rid of every illegal dispensary in La Mesa. We get a lot more tax money, and the dispensaries that have been good corporate citizens and good neighbors,” said Baber.
The city is accepting applications, but will not after the ordinance is scheduled to take effect November 7.