The Palm Springs City Council will consider tonight allowing a medical marijuana collective to operate across the street from a location that was previously approved by council members.

Desert Organic Solutions, which has one of two permits to operate a dispensary in the city, has proposed opening shop at 19486 Newhall Road instead of 19437 Newhall Road, according to a city staff report.

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About 30 medical marijuana advocates flooded Board of Supervisors meeting on Tuesday, demanding that San Bernardino County stop dragging its feet and lift its moratorium on medical marijuana dispensaries.

In June, the supervisors voted unanimously to implement an identification card program for medical marijuana patients through the Public Health Department.

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SAN BERNARDINO - Medical marijuana advocates plan to rally today prior to the San Bernardino County Board of Supervisors meeting.

They want officials to speed up the process of crafting guidelines for marijuana dispensaries and collectives.

"They've done absolutely nothing apparently, and they're not moving forward at all," said Lanny Swerdlow, director of the Marijuana Anti-Prohibition Project, an Inland Empire medical-marijuana patient support group and law reform ...

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A Palm Springs medical marijuana collective owner pleaded not guilty Monday to charges that he illegally operated a dispensary in Palm Desert nearly four years ago.

Stacy Hochanadel, owner of CannaHelp, was arrested in December 2006 and charged with felony possession of marijuana for sale, transport and sale of marijuana, and keeping a place to sell controlled substances.

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The Hemet City Council is poised to again extend a moratorium on medical marijuana dispensaries until April 2011 as it continues to grapple with where they should be located

In June, the council approved the first moratorium extension.

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INDIO - It's round two for Stacy Hochanadel.

He plead not guilty to illegally operating a Palm Desert medical marijuana dispensary in 2006.

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Canyon Lake council members voted unanimously Wednesday to extend the city's temporary ban on medical marijuana dispensaries for at least another year.

The council extended the prohibition so city staff can continue gathering information for an ordinance to deal with the issue, city officials said.

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Don't shackle farmers

Some decades ago, Joseph Stalin was so determined to collectivize agriculture in Russia that he starved millions of his farmers to death when all they wanted to do was grow food on their own farms.

While Obama and his family luxuriated in Hawaii, tens of thousands of hungry California farmers and farmworkers stood in long lines waiting for handouts to feed their families while farmlands lay empty ("Feds boost effort to revive vital delta," Dec. 23)!

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Palm Springs' City Council whittled the list of applicants vying to operate the two medical marijuana collectives allowed under a recent ordinance from 11 to six earlier this month. At its 6 p.m. meeting tonight, the council will continue to mull which two operators should be chosen.

The meeting takes place 6 p.m. at Palm Springs City Hall, 3200 East Tahquitz Canyon Way.

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The city of Big Bear Lake is saying no to marijuana dispensaries. During the Dec. 14 City Council meeting, council members unanimously approved two ordinances prohibiting dispensaries within the city limits.

The city’s director of building and planning, Jim Miller, said the ordinances will clarify the city’s stance in prohibiting medical marijuana dispensaries. “(The development code) does have language prohibiting land use in violation of federal law,” Miller said. “We ...

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PALM DESERT - The new five-page policy is based on California law: patients with a doctor's prescription or a government issued medical marijuana I.D. card can have a half pound of dried marijuana and either six mature plants or a dozen immature plants.

Deputies couldn't seize the marijuana if the medical claim is valid and the amount under the legal limit. But, the pot can be taken away if the deputy believes it's being used or sold illegally.

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Indio police are encouraging attendees at this weekend's Phish Festival 8 to refrain from smoking marijuana to have a good time.

Police aren't disclosing their methods but said they will be on the lookout for anyone caught doing drugs during the three-day event at the Empire Polo Club in Indio.

Samuel Martin, who writes at phishandthedead.blogspot.com, does not dispute that Phish fans tend to smoke marijuana at concerts just as the Grateful Dead's Deadheads.

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Something was burning at the revival of Cypress Hill's Smokeout at San Manuel Amphitheater in Devore on Friday and Saturday, and it wasn't just the performances from big-name artists.

The festival, which is a celebration of music and cannabis culture, returned for the first time since 2003 with performances from artists including Slipknot, a reunion of Sublime, Deftones and Pennywise as well as an expo aimed at educating people about marijuana.

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CALIMESA - Medical marijuana dispensaries aren't allowed in Calimesa - at least for the near future.

The Calimesa City Council was scheduled to vote on a possible ban on medical pot dispensaries Sept. 21, but decided instead to place a 45-day moratorium on them, said Councilman Ray Quinto. The council directed city staff to gather more detailed information about the issue during the moratorium, pushing a possible vote to at least November.

Quinto said the discussion began ...

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