cannabisnews.com: City May Ban Outdoor Pot Gardens City May Ban Outdoor Pot Gardens Posted by CN Staff on October 19, 2005 at 11:52:00 PT By Glenda Anderson, The Press Democrat Source: Press Democrat Ukiah, CA -- Medical pot growers in Ukiah are ignoring a city law requiring them to obtain permits and to grow most plants indoors, pushing city officials to consider outlawing outdoor cannabis cultivation altogether.Ukiah's law requiring a use permit for medical pot-growing operations took effect two months ago. So far, "nobody's applied for a use permit," said Ukiah Planning Director Charley Stump. Nonetheless, pot growers continue to operate.Although it is not known how many pot patches exist in the city, officials have investigated at least 15 complaints about the gardens, Stump said.The county Air Quality Management District has fielded about 40 calls complaining about the stench of ripening pot in Ukiah this harvest season, more than double the number of last year's, said Air Pollution Control Officer Dean Wolbach."It's not less smelly" in Ukiah, he said.To make its pot-growing ordinance both easier to enforce and more resistant to expected court challenges, the Ukiah City Council tonight will consider dropping the use-permit requirement and adopting a ban on all outdoor marijuana plants.The ordinance currently allows a maximum of six plants to be grown indoors on a residential lot. Up to two may be grown outdoors with special permission.Proposed ordinance changes also include eliminating limits on the number of plants and dropping restrictions on their proximity to schools and churches.City Councilman John McCowen, who spearheaded the regulation, was unsurprised it has been largely ignored."Clearly, most of the growers and the dispensaries are in this for the money. And as long as they think the profit outweighs the risk, they're going to go ahead with business as usual," he said.Despite its failures, McCowen said he believes the ordinance has inhibited some pot gardens and he expects it to become more effective over time.The ordinance was intended to reduce pot-related robberies, burglaries and the stench of ripe marijuana that has infiltrated residential neighborhoods since voters passed Proposition 215 in 1996, legalizing marijuana for medical use.Dozens of cities, including Santa Rosa, Petaluma and Willits, have adopted or are working on ordinances to regulate medical pot gardens or dispensaries.Medical pot advocates are fighting back.Oakland-based Americans for Safe Access is suing several cities over pot-related ordinances and may add Ukiah to the list, said Safe Access attorney Joe Elford.He said Ukiah's ordinance violates state medical pot laws and places patients in danger by requiring they apply through a public permit process."They're asking medical marijuana patients to put up a sign telling the world they're cultivating marijuana, which is arguably stupid," Elford said.It's no wonder medical pot patients are ignoring the law, he said.Elford said he may defend Ukiah pot grower Memo Parker, whose outdoor garden the city is trying to stop through a court injunction.The founders of Hemp Plus Ministry, Ukiah's newest marijuana dispensary, also may be headed to court.They claim they're a church so they're not bound by the city's temporary prohibition on pot dispensaries."All plants and cannabis were put here for us by the Creator," said the Rev. Patrick Duff, who is an ordained minister through the Universal Life Church, which offers certificates on the Internet.Rapport said the alleged church exemption is doubtful."To claim they have a First Amendment right to use marijuana in their religion is highly questionable," he said.Complete Title: City May Ban Outdoor Pot Gardens as Growers Ignore LawSource: Press Democrat, The (CA)Author: Glenda Anderson, The Press DemocratPublished: Wednesday, October 19, 2005Copyright: 2005 The Press DemocratContact: letters pressdemo.comWebsite: http://www.pressdemo.com/Related Articles:Council Passes Ordinance Limiting Pot Growinghttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread20632.shtmlCity Plan To Control Pot Grows Criticizedhttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread20519.shtmlUkiah Seeks To Limit Medical Pothttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread20147.shtml Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help Comment #7 posted by FoM on October 20, 2005 at 10:44:37 PT Related Article from The The Ukiah Daily Journal Marijuana Ordinance Under Review***By Seth Freedland, The Daily JournalThursday, October 20, 2005 The Ukiah City Council proposed an overhaul of its marijuana cultivation ordinance to the Planning Commission after a brief, but occasionally spirited public comment period Wednesday night. The only true debate within the council centered on a per-parcel limit, with the majority approving a cap allowing for two patients.The proposed alterations prohibit all outdoor marijuana growth and protect against fire code violations with visits from the city fire marshal. Regulations in the existing ordinance -- such as the no-cultivation zones around city parks and schools -- would be pared away in the new proposal. City Attorney David Rapport said the simpler approach would allow for a more enforceable ordinance, and the city retains the ability to tighten the law in the future. The sparse public comment period supplied a few staples of public marijuana discussions. One man discussed the dubious illegality of marijuana in comparison to more lethal tobacco products. Another man, who lives near a marijuana-grower and saw a thief use his back yard in hopes of stealing the crop, thanked the council for the "public safety" decision. Yet another resident said she worried over the demand for electricity that pot cultivation requires.But the meeting quickly skyrocketed in vehemence when the two reverends at Hemp Plus Ministry, a business/church that dispenses medical pot, addressed the council. Ukiah Morrison said he was "appalled" that the council "considered (themselves) leaders" while legislating a plant "that God gave us." His colleague, Patrick Duff, responded to published accounts of 30 odor complaints by brandishing 66 signatures of residents "who love the smell of marijuana," he said. Duff added that the smell of fast food caused more of an odorous nuisance.Both men appeared to politically threaten the council by noting, as Morrison said, "There are a lot more of us than there are of you. We're going to do some changing here." But the council paid the reverends no heed as Mayor Mark Ashiku emphasized the city's goal for harmonious living. Councilmember Mari Rodin told the audience they could move into unincorporated areas of the county to cultivate naturally, but the growth is not appropriate for small cities like Ukiah. Councilmember John McCowen, who slammed Morrison and Duff for "a complete lack of awareness on unlimited growing in dense residential" areas, led the charge to maintain a two-person per-parcel limit. Rodin worried over enforcement issues, picturing the countless hours city staff might need to investigate all indoor plant counts. Despite Rapport's stated belief that limits would better be maintained by allowing neighbors to report public nuisances on the stench -- which would then result in a possible injunction on the grower -- McCowen said publicizing a limit would benefit the community.The Planning Commission will host a public hearing on the topic and recommend a final ordinance later this month.Seth Freedland can be reached at udjsf pacific.net Copyright: 2005 The Ukiah Daily Journalhttp://www.ukiahdailyjournal.com/Stories/0,1413,91~3089~3099460,00.html [ Post Comment ] Comment #6 posted by FoM on October 20, 2005 at 10:40:45 PT Max Flowers I found the article. I still had it bookmarked.http://www1.pressdemocrat.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20051019/NEWS/510190329/1033/NEWS01 [ Post Comment ] Comment #5 posted by FoM on October 20, 2005 at 10:31:17 PT Max Flowers I just looked and I think they don't have the article up on their site anymore. It wasn't a snipped source. The title comes up but the article didn't. [ Post Comment ] Comment #4 posted by Max Flowers on October 20, 2005 at 10:24:13 PT Who's Rapport?? This article just says at the bottom "Rapport said..." without any prior mention of who Rapport is...? Is this a snipped article? [ Post Comment ] Comment #3 posted by runruff on October 19, 2005 at 18:57:32 PT: Sacrament? Mr. Rapport,For any religon to prove that their alleged god is viable is totally unprovable. So what is your point? [ Post Comment ] Comment #2 posted by runderwo on October 19, 2005 at 15:30:01 PT hah "To claim they have a First Amendment right to use marijuana in their religion is highly questionable," he said.Oh? And who is the judge of what a valid religious practice is and is not? What criteria do we use to determine that? Or is it just arbitrary, whatever feels good to the most people? [ Post Comment ] Comment #1 posted by siege on October 19, 2005 at 13:24:51 PT Cannabis smoke less Cannabis smoke less carcinogenic than tobacco smoke Category: Alcohol/Addiction/Illegal Drugs News Article Date: 19 Oct 2005 email this article to a friendCannabis smoke is not as carcinogenic as tobacco smoke. In a review article published today in Harm Reduction Journal, Dr. Melamede from the University of Colorado, Colorado Springs, USA,http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/medicalnews.php?newsid=32229 [ Post Comment ] Post Comment