In New York City, recreational use of marijuana remains illegal—but that hasn’t stopped the cannabis scene from thriving. Although medical marijuana was legalized in the Big Apple in 2016, the city has just recently loosened its stance on recreational cannabis.

Last September, the city rolled out new guidelines, with police now giving tickets rather than arresting people for simple possession. As a result, arrests for possession fell from an average of 1,300 per month to just 151 arrests in the month following adoption of the new guidelines.

That move was advocated by Mayor Bill de Blasio and reflects the growing overall tolerance toward recreational usage. In fact, the entire state could soon be seeing a change in legislation.

Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo included a study into the pros and cons of statewide legalization in his 2018 budget, and that study by the state Health Department concluded that adults in NYC should be able to use marijuana for recreational purposes, with a 7 to 10 percent tax imposed.

“[The] study by the state Health Department concluded that adults in NYC should be able to use marijuana for recreational purposes”

That’s a significant pivot for Cuomo, who had previously demonized cannabis as “a gateway drug.” Legalization even became the central theme of the campaign for Cynthia Nixon, his opponent in the 2018 Democratic governor’s primaries.

That all bodes well for the near future, but what does that mean today?

The bottom line is that recreational use is still illegal in New York City, but penalties aren’t as stiff as they used to be.

A Growing Trend

Events such as the quarterly Revel showcase, which focuses on topics related to innovation in the cannabis industry, help spotlight the opportunities that lie in legal cannabis. Past themes have included Cannabis + The Body, Cannabis + The Consumer, and most recently, Cannabis + Capital.

As one of the world’s economic strongholds, it makes sense that the business opportunities cannabis offers would be capturing the interest of New York City; in May, the city will play host to the Cannabis World Congress and Business Exposition.

The environment for cannabis is changing rapidly in New York City, and 2019 already holds big changes in terms of legalization. For now, visitors to the Big Apple should exercise caution in their public cannabis consumption.

The post The state of cannabis in NYC appeared first on Flowertown.

Drive about 15 miles east of downtown Los Angeles and you’ll find El Monte: an unsuspecting seven-mile stretch of town that has played captain to San Gabriel Valley’s shifting cultural tides for decades. In the 1950s, El Monte was one of the only cities in the LA area to initially welcome Rock n’ Roll shows. This prompted Frank Zappa to write “Memories of El Monte” for The Penguins—an ode to those mythical nights at Legion Stadium. On a recent Saturday, we took that drive east to talk with Andre Quintero, the mayor who hopes cannabis will renew El Monte’s claim to fame as the “cultural beachhead” of the San Gabriel Valley.

A city’s history, a city’s struggle

Like many cities in the country, El Monte is defined by its economic fluctuations. In the early 20th century, the core of their economy was made up of fruit orchards, walnut groves, hay and vegetable fields. When farm profits plummeted during the Great Depression, the community transformed from an agricultural haven into a sleepy residential town with a robust industrial sector. Expansive buildings housed big brand distribution centers or manufacturing facilities in place of those famed walnut groves.

Those industries came and went. Now, it’s a city comprised of hard-working families and first-generation immigrants. For a long period, El Monte received most of its tax revenue from the famous dealership “Longo Toyota,” the largest Toyota dealer in the U.S.A. Then, 2008 hit. The city lost 12 million in expected revenue from the Toyota dealership that year because “when people lose money, they don’t buy cars.” This economic hit made it clear that the city needed to diversify its industry profile if El Monte were to thrive again.

Facility by Longo Toyota – CC BY

A mayor evolving

At least, this was obvious to the incoming mayor Andre Quintero. At the time of his first election in 2009, he never thought improving El Monte would mean including cannabis. Raised by Colombian parents, he quickly absorbed the stigmas and stereotypes surrounding the plant. A criminal prosecutor for over 11 years, Quintero saw cannabis users as criminals and sought to put them away. As mayor, he remained a staunch opponent to cannabis legalization. When we spoke to Quintero, he laughed recalling one conversation he had with the mayor of Coachella in early 2016: “I remember we were on completely opposite sides of the fence when it came to cannabis in our community. I couldn’t imagine being as open as he was.”

It wasn’t until the November 2016 elections that Andre Quintero reconsidered his position on cannabis. Proposition 64 had not only passed in California but was supported by 54.49% of El Monte’s residents. When Quintero looked at the numbers, his first thought was, “if my community supports legalization, I need to reevaluate my decision on it.”

“If my community supports legalization, I need to reevaluate my decision on it.”

To be an adequate representative to the people who elected him, Quintero decided to re-educate himself about cannabis quick.

Welcoming cannabis (with a few conditions)

Fast forward to this year: on January 1, 2019, El Monte officially began accepting applications for medical marijuana cultivation, manufacturing, and distribution facilities. Even with his dramatic shift in opinion in recent years, Quintero says he’s taken a conservative approach to introducing the cannabis industry into the city. He’ll be the first to admit, “there’s a big brother aspect to it all.” For instance, the El Monte Police Department will have 24/7 access to security cameras in and outside of every manufacturing facility.

A cash business, cannabis-related facilities will be allowed to have a maximum of 200 dollars on site to curb any possibility of crime. They also must provide a 24/7 contact number for nearby residents and business owners. Of course, each property must adhere to all the strict regulations outlined by California (particularly when it comes to odor control and ventilation) on top of the regulations outlined by the city council. Recreational manufacturing, retail stores, or any customer-facing cannabis facilities are still not permitted in the city. In other words, dispensaries are still outlawed.

One property at a time

When we met up with Quintero, he was eager to show us his number one reason for taking the leap of faith with cannabis: 4350 Temple Boulevard. The lot used to be a silver and gold plating facility in its heyday but has since been in and out of bankruptcy for over a decade. According to Quintero, “they did some serious damage to the environment and contaminated the soil.” One step onto the property and you see eroded pavement, holes in ceilings, and graffiti everywhere. The dilapidated building sits next to another dilapidated building: two giant eyesores hiding behind a Home Depot.

For this property alone Quintero thought, “what industry can I get here that would be willing to spend money to fix up the property, clean it up, and improve the area? I needed an industry that was willing to take the high-risk, high-reward strategy. Sure enough, it was cannabis.”

“I needed an industry that was willing to take the high-risk, high-reward strategy. Sure enough, it was cannabis.”

One property at a time, Quintero hopes welcoming medical marijuana facilities will help “activate the industrial sector again and build thriving local businesses that will pay taxes and clean up the neglected properties.” When he showed us the neighboring property that had recently been taken over by canna-business, Quintero was pleasantly surprised: “it already looks better than the last time I was here.”

Cannabis and the community

Currently, there are about nine applicants in line to be considered for various properties in the newly designated “Green Zone” of El Monte. In the application, Quintero has incorporated ordinances to ensure the community benefits most from the deal. For example, “part of [the] city ordinance is that applicants should sign a Labor Peace Agreement–so if employees want to unionize, they’ll be able to.” While the city cannot force applicants to agree to terms like these, it does mean a better application score. Since the application acceptance is based on a point-system, agreeing to these terms give your application a better chance of acceptance.

Applicants must also promise to hire residents of the San Gabriel Valley to populate the jobs at their new facility. Since Andre Quintero became mayor, the town has seen 15.5% unemployment drop to 5%, but as he says, “there’s still more work to do.” Quintero is excited about the new employers because “it could mean a lot of new jobs that will pay above minimum wage.” These new jobs will likely look mighty appealing compared to existing opportunities in the area. When we visited 4350 Temple City Boulevard, the property was operating as extra parking space for a nearby Amazon fulfillment warehouse. The starting wage there? 12 dollars an hour.

Quintero is excited about the new employers because “it could mean a lot of new jobs that will pay above minimum wage.”

Another unique aspect of El Monte’s requirements for medical marijuana facilities is a “Community Benefit Fund.” Quintero says applicants must pledge to donate a minimum of $50,000 for community benefit, the funds of which will be allocated by the city council in conjunction with a committee comprised of residents who can push back on the council’s decisions. According to Quintero, “the money could fund drug education awareness programs in the city or help clean up our public parks.” If it were up to him, Quintero would use that money to educate El Monte’s youth on the dangers of consuming any substances underage. If all goes as planned, Quintero says the Community Benefit Fund should result in over $100,000 annually for community benefits.

Misinformation and miseducation

The city council decision to legalize medical marijuana cultivation and manufacturing facilities in El Monte faced staggering backlash and protests. Surprisingly, most of these opponents are not residents of El Monte, but neighboring towns like Temple City. Opponents of the change said they are most worried about endangering children and declining property values. However, Quintero and local pro-cannabis advocates believe the real reasons for opposition are based on outdated stigmas and stereotypes, which are especially strong amongst the conservative Chinese-immigrant community that makes up much of the San Gabriel Valley. According to Quintero, “there is still a lot of ignorance related to marijuana in general. It’s not a chemical; it is a plant with so many incredible properties.”

“there is still a lot of ignorance related to marijuana in general. It’s not a chemical; it is a plant with so many incredible properties.”

To quell safety concerns, Quintero plans to use a portion of the revenue from the new medical marijuana facilities to help fund law enforcement against any black market operations that would result in more crime. According to Quintero, the city of El Monte “seized about 16,000 plants in the last few years, so we’re very conscientious about making sure that for the legal market to function, you have to clamp down on the illegal market.” He is hoping part of the new revenue will go to El Monte’s police force to continue squashing the black market.

While many are concerned about declining property values, Quintero says this claim is unfounded when you look at the studies on how cannabis affects real estate. In fact, a study conducted for Economic Inquiry in Colorado found the opposite to be true: when cities legalized cannabis businesses, property values went up (in this particular study, the increase was 6%). While there are currently no studies about how the legalization of industrial medical marijuana facilities affect property values, the study on retail stores demonstrates that nearby cannabis is considered a local amenity (not a drawback) for house buyers and real estate agents alike. Regardless, everyone can agree that a functioning facility is better than a bankrupt and decrepit building. The question is if cannabis is not allowed to revive these properties, who will?

Another factor Quintero’s critics refer to is that Quintero himself and other city council members have received numerous political donations from some of the same companies applying for a space in El Monte’s new “Green Zone.” Fitting to his personality, Quintero had a straight-forward response to this: “when you are one of the only officials openly discussing cannabis in the San Gabriel Valley, yeah. You are going to get contributions from cannabis companies who want to be here.” For Quintero, the donations he’s received by developers are inevitable and have no impact on his decision making.

Pushing forward

Despite what his opponents’ claim are significant contributions from cannabis companies, Quintero spent less money on his last campaign than ever before and was still elected to serve El Monte. For this reason alone, he feels confident about moving forward. The facilities are still several months out; once accepted by City Council, applicants still need to obtain state licenses and renovate the building before they begin operations. For Quintero’s opponents, the “war” is far from over.

As we finished our conversation with Quintero, he chuckled at how this new industry parallels the history of El Monte: “funny enough, the two sectors that made El Monte thrive (agriculture and industry) are coming back in the form of cannabis.” His vision of revitalization is likely just a seed of what is to come for cannabis in struggling communities. As federal legalization looms, it’s possible that Quintero’s vision could multiply to thousands of cities across the nation, rejuvenating areas abandoned by old industries. After all, if a criminal prosecutor with no affinity for cannabis can change his mind and welcome the new industry, can’t anyone?

The post Growth in El Monte: the unexpected story appeared first on Flowertown.

Can you picture a CEO of a Fortune 500 company using cannabis as their primary method to push the long work days? What about your favorite celebrity before a big show?

Because of the stigma, it seems like an oxymoron for someone highly successful to use cannabis. But many high-achieving individuals use cannabis to help push the bounds of their creativity and productivity.

There are multiple CEOs, business owners, and even entertainers who boast about how cannabis helps them work at optimal levels (or to merely manage the stress of their work). A study conducted back in 2016 suggests that cannabis actually improves brain function and can lead to improved performance depending on how it’s used.

Let’s explore some of the influencers who are changing the conversation on cannabis and who’s using it.

Richard Branson by Youtube – CC BY

1.   Richard Branson

Richard Bronson is worth $5.1 billion dollars. You may have already heard of him from flying Virgin America or listening to one of the artists under his record label Virgin Records.

Branson has spoken openly in disagreement with policies that do not support the legalization of cannabis. He’s an advocate for decriminalization and regulation. Back in 2016, he even openly proposed that parents should use cannabis with their young adult children to reduce the stigma.

George Zimmer by Facebook – CC BY

2. George Zimmer

“You’re going to love the way you look. I guarantee it,” is the famous line from the Men’s Warehouse commercials featuring founder, George Zimmer. As the former CEO of a company with thousands of employees and $30 million in revenue, he advocates long-term cannabis use.

Zimmer considers himself a cannabis activist. He’s shared that he used cannabis to help wean him off of an alcohol addiction that plagued him during his first years as a CEO. As a result, he hasn’t used alcohol in 35 years and successfully ran his company before stepping down as CEO.

Elon Musk by The CEO Magazine – CC BY

3. Elon Musk

Tesla, Space X, and Paypal… these are huge companies with one thing in common. They were all either founded or co-founded by the South-African born and quite controversial entrepreneur, Elon Musk.

Early in September 2018, Elon made waves throughout social media when he smoked cannabis in an interview with Joe Rogan, which was live-streamed on YouTube. The decision to participate caused quite a stir, but he’s expressed that his work is very stressful and requires a lot of brain power to shoot Teslas into orbit or make hyperspeed trains. Cannabis might be what helps him push through his tougher days.

John Sperling by NY Times – CC BY

4. John Sperling

You may not know his name, but you know the name of the for-profit college he founded: The University of Phoenix. As the founder of this college, Sperling created a multi-billion dollar endeavor.

He was known to always be an advocate for the use of cannabis after using it to help with the side effects that plagued him years after surviving prostate cancer. His work to push for the decriminalization of cannabis is focused around his belief that it has multiple benefits.

Whoopi Goldberg by Fandom – CC BY

5. Whoopi Goldberg

Actress Whoopi Goldberg is known for movies like The Color Purple, Ghost, and her role as a talk show host on The View. Her long-standing career has afforded her numerous accolades and respect in the entertainment industry.

In 2014, she published a piece expressing her love for cannabis because it helps her with physical pain and everyday emotional stresses. It also helped her following her addiction to using cigarettes. Today she’s founded a line of cannabis products meant to help women combat premenstrual syndrome side effects.

While these celebrities may have been able to find the benefits of cannabis use not only inspiring in their own lives, but elevating of their professional ones, so too can you. It’s no secret that cannabis has the ability to curb arthritis pain, eliminate migraines, and can even help you be so productive as to get your family out of a hurricane’s way.

The post Five successful people who use cannabis appeared first on Flowertown.

Cannabis has been used for thousands of years. While it’s gone from a common form of medicine to an outlawed substance and then back again, it’s heralded and sensationalized usage has created a myriad of stereotypes and stigmas that are, essentially, completely false.

From stoned-out surfer bros to dirty, Deadhead hippies and everyone between, cannabis has cultivated it’s fair share of characters that may reflect a certain stereotype.

But, for the most part, all these stereotypes are exactly that: Stereotypes, stigmas and falsehoods. So as cannabis slowly leaves Prohibition, it’s also time to leave behind the stigmas and stereotypes.

But this invokes the question of how, exactly, do we erase decades of purposeful stigmatization? Normalization is one of our best bets in doing this and something that you can do every day in what are, essentially, small and mundane ways.

While we may have outlined some of them below, this is just the tip of the iceberg for how you can change the way cannabis is viewed in your own life.

It might not change the world, but it could change the world around you. Beyond that, what more can you ask for?

What we talk about when we talk about cannabis

In the words of Don Draper, “If you don’t like what’s being said, change the conversation.” One of the easiest, and most important, ways we can destigmatize cannabis is to change what we talk about when we talk about cannabis.

We can do this by changing the language we use in regards to this plant. For example, instead of calling it “pot,” “weed,” or “marijuana,” just call it cannabis. In fact, marijuana was a term used as a way to stigmatize cannabis by associating it with Mexican-American immigrants in the 1930s, born out the Reefer Madness-era of propaganda.

Other ways you can be more proactive in your language is to use terms like “pre-roll” in lieu of “joint” and “flower” instead of “bud.”

Avoid stereotypes

It’s easy to let cannabis (and cannabis users) fall into its stereotypes, even if we’re just joking about it. This doesn’t help the cause and only reinforces negative connotations.

While it’s true that certain strains and terpenes make you hungry (munchies) or can create a sense of “couch lock,” which contributes to the overall idea of a lazy stereotype, you don’t have to deal with these side effects.

Cannabis has become so hyper-specified to whatever experience you want to have, it’s almost inexcusable for people to fall into the same stereotypical behavior as twenty, ten, even five years ago.

Cannabis can be used now to make you more productive, to help heal ailments, and even improve your diet.

“Just act normal, man.”

While the sage advice of “just act normal, man” may have been reserved for being a little too high in public places in high school, it’s actually pretty useful in the grand scheme of things.

You can be all talk, but if you really want to bring cannabis to the forefront of popular consciousness, why not just integrate it into your everyday life?

At your next backyard barbeque, put out a tray of pre-rolls or low-dosage edibles next to the adult drinks (make sure you label them so your friends know what they’re getting into).

That way cannabis is just a casual part of the evening and not something to be sequestered into someone’s bedroom, a practice full of secrecy and shame.

People are free to partake or not. Much like how a cooler of beers normalizes the presence (and consumption) of beer at a party, so too does a display of cannabis.

Be honest

Responsible cannabis use involves keeping it out of the hands of children, obviously. But if they ever asked about it, what would you say?

You could be honest and open about it.

Educate them on the plant, explaining its medical benefits for those with disabilities or going through therapy. But it’s imperative to talk about it in an appropriate way, making it clear that it’s safe for responsible adults to use from time to time.

Cannabis and parenting has become a new, major issue in the community as recreational legalization moves across the country. It’s important for active parents to learn how to have a dialogue with their children about this complex plant.

Vote!

Exercising your civic duty is a critical aspect of being an American, as well as a cannabis user.

Political activism is the only thing that has brought legalized usage to America and it’s essential for perpetuating that movement. If you want to to reap the benefits of cannabis in your state, do your part and vote in local elections.

But, in addition to voting, educating your fellow consumers and peers is just as important. To learn more about cannabis yourself, take a look at how cannabis can be used to prevent migraines or even ease joint pain with topicals.

The post Simple ways to destigmatize cannabis in your own life appeared first on Flowertown.

With recreational marijuana as the new law of the land, legislators have looked to those who suffered consequences of the old laws. Crafting the blueprints for a section of Proposition 64, the California Senate passed a bill in late August to remove non-violent marijuana convictions and downgrade felonies to misdemeanors.

Should the bill go into effect, more than 218,000 people would be able to get a cleaner criminal record.

What does the bill actually do?

The bill, AB-1793, requires the Department of Justice to go through relevant cases from 1975–2016 where current cannabis laws would affect past sentencing. From these cases, they would determine which convictions can be dismissed, sealed, or downgraded to misdemeanors.

The department can challenge cases based on the person’s eligibility (mainly that they were over 21 and carrying marijuana within the legal limit) or if they are a perceived danger to society.

The bill also mandates that people with eligible convictions are notified by a public defender.

How long will this take?

The Department of Justice would have until July 1, 2019 to identify these cases and an additional year (July 1, 2020) to determine their new classification. Once a sentence has been adjusted or removed, the department will have 30 days to update the criminal database to reflect the change.

If eligible cases from the first deadline aren’t challenged by the 2020 deadline, those cases would be automatically dismissed or reduced to misdemeanors.

To speed up the process, the bill assigns priority to people with relevant convictions and those currently serving a cannabis sentence who petition the courts themselves.

What does this all this mean?

This will help people get greater access to jobs (including in the cannabis industry), reinstate gun rights (a particular plus in rural areas), and most importantly free those currently in prisons or reduce their sentences.

The bill is also major criminal justice reform for people of color, who have been disproportionately affected by drug laws in general.

Hundreds of thousands of people were involved in non-violent marijuana crimes over roughly the past 30 years. For some, likely many, of these people, this bill will erase the only blemish on their criminal records.

This paints a stark reality to the many sides of cannabis. While some consumers can enjoy cannabis to the point where they can plan a summer party around it, or use it to help alleviate joint pain, others have been punished for simply possessing it.

Thanks to that bill, many more will be able to enjoy the benefits of cannabis without having to worry about unnecessary legal repercussions.

The post How California is erasing cannabis convictions appeared first on Flowertown.

The day after an election is always rife with hot takes and punditry. Those who thought they knew what was going to happen have now shifted the conversation to how it didn’t and what that all means.

While we’ll try to avoid the unnecessary editorialization (as much as possible) we did put together this handy decompression guide to help you figure out what the state of the American Cannabis Union looks like post-2018 midterms.

Michigan

Michigan has passed and is officially recreationally legal. This marks the first midwest state to go green and, also, may help revitalize a flailing economy.

While Detroit may never go back to its automaker heydays, it certainly has the space and man power to immediately activate large scale cannabis production and distribution.

As an epicenter for the Midwest, there’s a plausible future where hemp or cannabis can makes its way to Detroit from Michigan farmland and, from there, to Chicago, Milwaukee, Indianapolis, Minneapolis, etc…

If there’s one thing the Emerald Triangle has seen, its that the cannabis boom can turn a city (and even a region) around for the better. Colorado is rolling in tax revenue from and Michigan, a state where the major metropolises have all gone bankrupt, can use the cash.

“This state, in general, definitely needs any kind of increase in revenue that it can get,” said Travis Murphy, the founder and CEO of North Coast Cannabis, based out of Detroit. “This [going recreational] definitely helps places like Flint and Detroit.”

Additionally, according to Murphy, the new law is much less restrictive on operations and helps clear up a variety of the ambiguities that currently plague the caregiver law.

Utah

Utah has now legalized medical cannabis, which is a huge milestone considering it is one of the most chemically stringent states in the country.

After all, beer in Utah is still 4% max by volume and Zion curtains are still a thing, for some reason.

So the advent of cannabis – at least in a medical capacity – may help move along not only public opinion, but legislative as well. Does this mean other laws governing alcohol will become more laxed? Does this mean that the state, in general, may mellow out a bit?

Utah, being one of the youngest states in the Union, is in prime position for recreational legalization as people between the ages of 18-34 show a 78 percent approval of legalized cannabis.

Missouri

Missouri has passed Amendment Two (otherwise known as “New Approach”), which allows medical cannabis with a 4 percent tax on sales. This tax revenue will then be directed toward health care services for veterans. If you watched the voter guide we put out earlier, here it is again, which includes a brief rundown on the three separate amendments that Missourians voted on yesterday:

North Dakota

North Dakota failed to pass recreational legalization, so it remains medically legal. Therefore, the automatic expungement process for cannabis convictions – which would have been a very progressive amendment for such a red state – is also not a reality.

Only time will tell, but with Michigan and Missouri also going with Utah, the green tide is beginning to move red on the color scale.

If you missed what was on the bills, take a look at our pre-election guide to get caught up. Additionally, as cannabis becomes increasingly legal, many of the people who work in the space find it hard to give back to those who’ve helped them. While legalization helps alleviate a number of problems, it also creates a large set of new ones.

What problems may come around for the states whose laws changed with this election? Only time will tell, but we’ll have our ear out for them.

The post Midterm follow-up: what happened, what it means appeared first on Flowertown.