San Diego

San Marcos Bans Marijuana Dispensaries

The city of San Marcos has banned all marijuana dispensaries this week, including cultivation and delivery services, just ahead of the legalization of recreational pot in California.

Marijuana is set to be a booming business in the San Diego area, and some local jurisdictions are exploring how to capture some the tax revenue it may generate when it becomes legal.

But San Marcos Mayor Jim Desmond said the city has other rising revenues and does not need that money.

Desmond told NBC 7, there is a lot of confusion over commercial and retail marijuana with state laws versus federal laws. 

"The citizens of San Marcos came and spoke and gave us their thoughts and opinions and overwhelmingly, they were against having dispensaries in the city of San Marcos," Desmond said.

But not all San Marcos residents are seeing eye-to-eye with the mayor.

"After a hard day, after a long day, working day, stressful day, my back just can't stay standing up and it hurts," said Kelly Garcia. "It just hurts to be standing, it hurts to be sitting and the only way for me to relax is just smoking weed."

Garcia, 19, said she works as a manager at McDonald's. She said buying marijuana at a local dispensary is fast, easy and--most importantly--safe.

"I don't believe they should ban them because if they were to ban them, then where are we going to go?" she said. "There are going to be people getting it from the streets and that's going to be considered as a crime right there."

Desmond told NBC 7, patients and recreational users can access marijuana legally by growing up to six plants in their home.

Delivery services are also banned under the new measure, according to the city. 

Recreational marijuana will become legal in California in January 2018.

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