There was a day not too long ago, that the 4800 block of Voltaire Street in OB had two medical marijuana dispensaries on it. Now there is none.
Both the med pot shops at 4827 A Voltaire and at 4852 Voltaire are totally gone, dude.
The first one to open was the storefront at 4852. Bill Tsiamis, the property owner, told me he did not know what was going on in the storefront that he owns. Supposedly, he had rented the space to someone who was to run some machinery. He came in one day, and it smelled he said. He was notified by mail from the City that the storefront had to go. They went about 2 weeks ago.
Bill was on site helping his worker restoring the store when I came by – fixing it back up for an open, retail establishment. They were replacing a cut-out in the wall, seemingly part of an over-the-counter transaction place the pot shop folks had installed. Now, Bill told me, a lotion and beauty supply store was coming in. They’ve signed a 3-year lease with him, he told me. It will help stabilize the area, he said.
The second medical herb dispensary to open was in the small building owned by Gregg Sullivan at the 4827 A site. That space was also totally closed up and empty. Sullivan was not available but we had heard that there supposedly had been a complaint that the dispensary that operated on his property was out of compliance with the new City rules, and Sullivan was threatened with a $2500 fine per day. Obviously he had to force out his tenants. The two young women who worked there are presumably out of a job now.
Sullivan has owned the property since 2002, and he had attempted to combine art and surfboards with his own shop, but had to close recently. The storefront was also the home of the Green Store for many years, where they paid a super reasonable rent from Sullivan.
We’re not certain, but it’s possible that under the new city rules, OB cannot harbor one medical herb dispensary. Pretty strange for the hippietown of San Diego.
{ 24 comments… read them below or add one }
So lame. 4852 probably could have stayed open a bit longer if 4827 A didn’t pop up several months later. 4827 A was everything that is wrong with dispensaries, too. 4852 was a great place, and they were always willing to work with me on $ for edibles for my terminally ill grandfather.
Yay for our city council creating de facto oligopolies by limiting how many can operate. Pro-Business agenda is pro-competition… until they are against it. They are against regulation, until they are for it. And way to only let them operate in sketchy areas of town, furthering the stereotype. I said it on the Voice a few days ago – San Diego is the Kansas of California.
Which council member was the one who proposed limiting to 4 a district?
The pharmaceutical companies, distillers and brewers, and private prison corporations are very rich and own many politicians, including Todd Gloria, Kamala Harris, and Kevin Faulconer. They will do whatever they can, legal or not, to halt anything that threatens their massive profits.
I don’t think big Pharma or Big Alcohol are personally lobbying our local politicians for tougher MMJ regulations. I think it’s probably more to appease zealots like Scott Chipman in PB, and groups like the Family Research Council, the Sheriff’s Dept., etc.
Then you are naive. 40% of the profits of CCA and Geo Group come from people imprisoned for marijuana, and 20% of the entire population are taking SSRI’s, MAOI’s, or TCA’s.
That has nothing to do with my comment… and I know all those facts.
I think it is connected to your comment. Those companies have much to lose from legalization, and they’re going to work hard at all levels – local, state, and federal – to maintain their profits.
Oh, not to say that FRC and the cops are not in on it too. Not sure about FRC, since Robertson and others recently publicly called for legalization, but cops want easy arrests that don’t shoot back and don’t make them go to court, and marijuana laws give them that.
They don’t really arrest people for possession anymore. It’s just $$ in the court system now. CCA and the like aren’t worried about San Diego MMJ regulations. They are worried about outright legalization.
Just had a friend get arrested for it and railroaded through the justice system less than 6 months ago.
“They don’t really arrest people for possession anymore.”
Where do you live? The were over 700,ooo marijuana arrests in the US in 2012, the majority of which were for possession. That’s 86 arrests an hour.
Guys. I’m talking about San Diego, not the entire US. You are preaching to the choir I know the stats.
This is about SD MMJ. Under 28.5 grams here and you aren’t arrested. $100 infraction.
Obviously that was in reference to not having a card.
Not true. My friend had less than 4 grams and was arrested by SDPD, charged with a misdemeanor, and coerced to “plead out”. Now he has a misdemeanor on his otherwise clean record.
Then he must have been doing something else to get the misdemeanor liking smoking in public, etc because there is no infraction for under 28.5 grams for solely a possession charge.
http://norml.org/laws/item/california-penalties
So you were there, huh? No, he was not. The cops get around the law by charging people with paraphernalia. You have some papers or a pipe, they arrest you.
Your buddy must have had more than an oz on him. Possession has been decriminalized up to an ounce with only a $100 fine. More than that can run you some jail time.
No, they just use whatever papers or pipe people have as an excuse to add another charge. Cops want easy arrests that plead out, they’re not going to give that up until they’re forced to.
Dear, Bill Tsiamis, owner of 4852 Voltaire. Whoever you had painting your building today, 6/12/14 was seen flicking cigarette butts to the sidewalk and street repeatedly today. Not only littering and disrespectful to the neighborhood, but toxic to the ocean which is downstream just blocks away. Voltaire too often gets dumped on already by those from not around here. Thank you for your help in the actions of your contracted help.
Clarke, your grateful OB neighbor
So it didn’t bother you enough to tell the offender directly ? You were obviously present to witness it, right ? Get some stones and don’t take the coward’s way out by posting something off-topic from the discussion at hand.
SaneVoice, sometimes I like to avoid conflict in front of a two year old daughter until I can come up with something more profound and effective than a big old “FU”. I have made more than one comment in my time to such offenders. My plan was to get my coffee at tiki port, a few stores down, and on my walk back a few minutes later, engage in conversation with him. He was not present when we returned, and I waited outside awhile.
In the meantime, sure takes some stones to anomalously flame on a comment board like you did here. Hopefully when I ‘get some stones’ they are bigger than shown by you here.
As far as off-topic, my apologies to the author if this was not the right venue, but am pretty sure, since I have gotten the address of the building own through people reaching out to me, and have followed up, that my methods are effective. If you have a problem about off-topic comments, all the rest on here could be considered straying from the topic as well by various degrees. So sorry this ruined your day. (sarcasm)
aloha,
Clarke
HA! They missed a dispensary that’s still on Voltaire, but it’s neither one that just got shut down. I hope they don’t. So ridic.
I was in an elevator yesterday with Faulconer…was even introduced to him, can’t stand him and it took everything I had to not lash out. I couldn’t, I was with somebody whom he’s friends with.
You forgot Bonnie Dumanis and Lorie Zapf. Ugh.
The Holy Trinity of corrupt and corporate San Diego politicians. I’m still in shock that Dumanis got re-elected.
I was wrong, just went by there and yep, they closed ’em all down those dirty rotten scoundrels.
Was going to say does anyone know of any still open in OB, but I don’t want to out any place or person!
HEY HEY! HO HO !! ILLEGAL DISPESARIES GOT TO GO!