Oregon Marijuana Business Groups Push to Allow Consumption in Public Venues
Friday, November 20, 2015
Currently, Oregonians can only smoke marijuana while on private property. In October, Sgt. Peter Simpson, with the Portland Bureau of Police, told GoLocal that patrol officers will still be on the lookout for those who smoke in public places, such as parks, streets or outside bars or restaurants.
Casey Houlihan, Director of the Oregon Retailers of Cannabis Association, told GoLocal that while there is no law explicitly forbidding a so-called “cannabis club,” which allows customers to consume marijuana in a bar or coffee shop style setting, he would like to see regulation that would allow those businesses to flourish
“There’s nothing explicitly illegal about it right now,” Houlihan said of entrepreneurs that may be interested in opening such a spot. “What we need is regulation, though, so we can see the way these businesses should operate and how they can succeed.”
“The Next Step in Normalization”
Houlihan said that allowing businesses focused around the consumption of marijuana are not unprecedented, citing the popular existence of bars and cigar lounges.
“This is the next step in normalization for the industry,” Houlihan said. “There are businesses that allow you to come and consume alcohol or tobacco, and now that it is a recreationally legal product, people should be able to do the same with cannabis.”
Donald Morse, Director of the Oregon Cannabis Business Council, agreed.
“People want to be able to go and enjoy cannabis around like-minded people like you can do at a bar,” Morse told GoLocal. “There’s also plenty of precedent for it with cigar lounges, where people can sit together and enjoy a cigar.”
Medical marijuana patient Mayana Bonaparte agreed that marijuana coffee shops should be accepted as part of the culture surrounding the legalized substance.
“Politics are such a big part of this,” Bonaparte said. “As you wouldn’t want an abortion clinic in a neighborhood with a lot of churches, you wouldn’t want a marijuana coffee shop in a conservative city. Portland is the most liberal pocket of Oregon, so it would be a great place to experiment.”
An Economic Boon?
Houlihan said he believes that allowing cannabis-consumption businesses such as cannabis cafes would bring increased revenues and jobs. He cited the performance of a few cannabis cafes that were already in operation, such as Portland’s World Famous Cannabis Cafe.
“The businesses that are operating this way already, I believe, are doing fairly well,” Houlihan said. “I think this could be something that would go hand-in-hand with what we’ve seen from increased marijuana sales.”
Bonaparte agreed.
“I could definitely see Portland being the most viable city for Amsterdam-type coffee shops,” Bonaparte said. “Marijuana is much healthier for people and the environment than substances we do use in public like alcohol or tobacco.”
Morse begged to differ. He said that he sees cannabis cafes achieving local success and that the Portland metro area could support "maybe five or seven different clubs in different parts of the city and the area." He did not, however, believe that cannabis clubs would be come big business.
“I think it’s going to be a neighborhood thing,” Morse said. “It won’t be that there are big companies or chains doing this. It will be a local place, a place that people in the area know of and can visit when they’d like to enjoy cannabis with other, like-minded people.”
Related Slideshow: 20 Things You Need to Know About Buying Pot in Oregon
Related Articles
- Recreational Marijuana Regulation Policy Likely to Be Stricter Than Medical
- Price Fluctuations Threaten to Drive Marijuana Growers Out of Business
- Portland Native Lands International Attention for Marijuana, Instagram Fame
- Rep. Earl Blumenauer Calls For End To Federal Marijuana Prohibition
- Rick Steves Launches Tour Against Marijuana Prohibition
- Should Marijuana Business Ownership Be Limited to Oregon Residents?
- Sexy Shirtless Ad Sells Marijuana Legalization
- Portland City Council Discusses Marijuana Tax
- Oregon’s New Marijuana Law: Everything You Need to Know
- Oregon Legislature Furthers Urban Rural Divide with Marijuana and Self-Serve Gas Laws
- Oregon Approves Home Delivery of Marijuana
- Oregon Liquor Control Commission Releases Marijuana Policy Recommendations
- Oregon Medical Marijuana Business Conference to Convene in Eugene
- Oregon Searches for Path Around Federally Illegal Marijuana Research
- Oregon Medical Marijuana Dispensaries Say Recreational Sales Fee is Unfair
- Should Portland Create a Marijuana Retail Zone?
- The Need for a Marijuana Breathalyzer
- Why Non-Intoxicating Hemp Could Damage Oregon Marijuana Crops
- Why Most OR Employers Will Keep Zero Tolerance Marijuana Policies
- Why Legalizing Marijuana Makes Sense for Oregon
- Will Marijuana Grow Sites Affect Neighboring Property Values?
- Will Marijuana Use Cost the Ducks the National Championship?
- Would A Republican President Doom Oregon’s Recreational Marijuana?
- Will Pot Legalization Fix Racial Disparity in Marijuana Arrests?
- Who’s Hot and Who’s Not in Oregon Politics: TriMet, Mayor Hales, Marijuana
- Who’s Hot and Who’s Not in Oregon Politics: Multnomah County Elections, Marijuana, Shell Oil
- Washington Sheriff Endorses Marijuana Regulation Measure
- Two Months After Marijuana Legalization, More Changes on Way
- Washington’s 7 Marijuana Legalization Mistakes Oregon Can Avoid
- What Did We Learn from The First Weekend of Recreational Marijuana Sales?
- Who’s Hot and Who’s Not in Oregon Politics: Medical Marijuana Users, Tobias Read, Sara Ryan
- What Landlords Should Know Before Renting to a Marijuana Business
- OLCC Requests Budget for Recreational Marijuana Program
- Ohio Voters to Consider Legalization of Marijuana
- Drug Trafficking Could Increase Due to Oregon’s Legalized Marijuana
- Doctors Say Increase in Marijuana Use Could Cause Health Risks
- Corvallis Teen Shoots Man with Pellet Gun in Marijuana Robbery
- Governor’s Fiancée Tied to Marijuana Farm in Washington
- How Will the Recreational Marijuana Industry in Oregon Expand?
- High Times for the Pizza Lobby: Why Legalizing Marijuana is a Bad Idea
- Colorado’s Marijuana Revenue & Oregon’s First Week Bonanza May Spark More States
- City of Gresham Asks for Public Input at Medical Marijuana Forum
- 72 Year Old Fugitive Known for Marijuana-Infused Rum Caught In Oregon
- 50,000 Oregonians Can Have Marijuana Charges Removed From Their Record
- Ask A Bartender: How Will Marijuana Affect My Cocktail
- Blumenauer Co-Authors Federal Bill to Allow Medical Marijuana Research
- City Council Proposes New Zoning for Commercial Growing of Marijuana
- Carla Axtman: Anti-Marijuana Event Organization ‘Reeks of Impropriety’
- Kevin Sali: Marijuana and Prosecutorial Discretion
- Medical Marijuana Could Reduce Opiate Abuse in Oregon, Study Says
- Measure 91: Oregon Becomes Third U.S. State to Legalize Marijuana
- Multnomah County Issues Report to Fight Underage Use of Legal Marijuana
- New Marijuana Rules Released By Liquor Control Commission
- NEW: Oregon Asks For Public Input On Recreational Marijuana
- New York Times Endorses Oregon’s Marijuana Legalization Efforts
- MBank First in Oregon to Open Its Doors to Marijuana Industry
- Marijuana Vote Will Be Close, Oregonian/KGW Poll Says
- Lower Freakuencies: Gothique Blend Gives Away Marijuana on Mondays
- Liquor Control Commission Releases Draft of Marijuana Rules
- Marijuana in Oregon Likely to be Much Cheaper than in Washington
- Marijuana Legalization Ballot Measure Gets City Club Backing
- Marijuana Sales Have Doubled in 1st Month of Retail Sales, Says Business Leader
- Marijuana Retailers Say Bank Rules Threaten Safety, Hurt Businesses
- 10 Things We Learned from The First Weekend of Recreational Marijuana Sales
Follow us on Pinterest Google + Facebook Twitter See It Read It