The Medical Marijuana Task Force voted on issues of security, hours of operation and lighting for medical marijuana dispensaries at its Oct. 22 meeting. The task force’s recommendations will go before City Council by January 2010. The task force voted 10-1 to set the hours of operation for all medical marijuana dispensaries to open no earlier than 7 a.m. and close no later than 9 p.m. Craig Balben, chair of the Sabre Springs Planning Group, was the lone dissenter. “[I] didn’t feel it was necessary for pot dispensaries to be open when it was dark out,” Balben said. “I would have preferred a 12-hour window (8 a.m.-8 p.m. or 7 a.m.-7 p.m.).” The board voted 8-3 to mandate that all medical marijuana collectives provide a full-time security guard, as well as cameras and alarms, to monitor the premises. Task force member Steven Whitburn voted for the security guards because he said the community needs to feel safe. Whitburn is vice-chair of the North Park Planning Committee. “If it’s a requirement necessary to ensure broad community support for dispensing cooperatives and collectives that becomes a hindrance to smaller facilities, that’s unfortunate,” Whitburn said. “But I think that our role here is not to contemplate the aspects of competition among medical marijuana facilities but rather to get something open in a way that the community is comfortable with.” Finally, the task force voted unanimously that all dispensaries must illuminate the facility and its immediate surrounding area, storage areas, parking lot, front façade and adjoining sidewalk. The lighting should be deflected away from adjacent properties. Next meeting At the next meeting, the task force will discuss the distance requirements for dispensaries from schools, parks and other collectives. The Attorney General’s guidelines do not restrict the location of the cooperatives. The task force will also discuss and likely vote on which city permit process dispensaries must go through in order to operate. Projects are reviewed at a Process 1, 2, 3, 4 or 5 level. At the Process 1 level, city staff decides unilaterally whether or not a dispensary meets the criteria. At the Process 3 level, staff must make findings to determine that the dispensary will not be a detriment to the public health, safety or welfare, as well as determine that the dispensary is an appropriate use at that location. The public is able to comment on the project at a hearing before a public officer, and can appeal the project to the Planning Commission. In a Process 5 decision, the Planning Commission makes a recommendation to City Council. The task force will consider distinguishing between permitting levels for dispensaries that operate in neighborhoods, as opposed to dispensaries looking to open in industrial areas. The Medical Marijuana Task Force will meet Friday, Oct. 30 from 9 to 11 a.m. in the closed session room at city hall, 202 C St. To view the agenda, visit http://www.sandiego.gov/medicalmarijuana.