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ZOA No. 2007-04 and OA No. 2007-02 <br />September 24, 2007 <br />Page 3 <br />against Pasadena was filed but never served. The lawsuit against Fresno <br />has been stayed and during the stay, Fresno enacted an ordinance which <br />appears to allow medical marijuana dispensaries and cooperatives in any <br />zoning district designated for medical offices but only if consistent <br />with State and Federal law (therefore, it really bans them.) <br />According to a December 2006 Fact Sheet put out by the Los Angeles <br />Police Department, as of December 2006 70 cities and six counties in <br />California had moratoriums, 34 cities and five counties had enacted <br />bans, and 24 cities and seven counties had established ordinances <br />authorizing them one way or another. Atascadero, Berkeley, Elk Grove, <br />Hayward, Oakland, San Francisco, San Jose, Santa Cruz, Santa Rosa, <br />Visalia, West Hollywood, and Whittier are among some of the cities which <br />allow medical marijuana dispensaries in specified zones. <br />Currently, Long Beach, Corona, Mission Viejo, Newport Beach, Santa <br />Clarita, and Simi Valley, among others, still have moratoriums in place. <br />Several other cities have opted not to address the issue at the Council <br />level, on the theory that (a) any land use not expressly permitted by <br />the zoning code is banned, and/or (b) no land use can be legally <br />established that violates federal law. These cities include Orange, San <br />Juan Capistrano, Burbank, and Glendale. <br />Numerous law enforcement agencies have expressed concerns regarding <br />medical marijuana dispensaries and cooperatives in their areas. The <br />California Police Chief's Association (CPCA) recently compiled a report <br />containing data from several jurisdictions which illustrates some of law <br />enforcement's complaints about these facilities: the facilities violate <br />federal law, street dealers often sell at lower prices to entice <br />patients away from dispensaries, non-residents travel to the city to <br />purchase marijuana, neighboring businesses have experienced a loss of <br />customers, there appears to be an increase in unreported crime to avoid <br />negative publicity, there have been robberies outside of and at the <br />dispensaries, there have been home invasion robberies of individuals who <br />utilize or are employed by the dispensaries, and patients selling to <br />non-patients (report available upon request in the City Clerk's office). <br />In addition, the media have investigated and reported about several <br />physicians suspected of providing prescriptions of medical marijuana <br />when they have not evaluated the patient's medical condition or the <br />patient has no serious medical condition that would warrant a <br />prescription. <br />75A-8 <br />