The Los Angeles City Attorney’s Office on Tuesday mailed letters to 439 medical marijuana dispensaries, notifying the owners that they must close by June 7 when the city’s permanent medical marijuana ordinance goes into effect.

The Better Alternative Treatment dispensary on Melrose Avenue is one of hundreds throughout the city that will be forced to close. (photo by Edwin Folven)

The owners of dispensaries that continue operating after June 7 will be subject to misdemeanor criminal prosecution, including six months in jail and a $1,000 fine, as well as civil penalties of up to $2,500 a day that they stay open. The letters were the first step in closing illegal dispensaries throughout the city, according to City Attorney spokesperson Frank Mateljan, who added that plans call for aggressive prosecution after June 7. The City Attorney’s Office is hoping most of the illegal dispensaries will voluntarily close.

“This is a blanket notice going out to let these operators know that the ordinance will be going into effect next month, and that it’s time for them to close up shop,” Mateljan said. “They have between now and when the ordinance goes into effect to close down.”

Mateljan said the letters were sent to both dispensary operators and property owners, and the locations were culled from a list of illegal dispensaries provided by the Los Angeles Police Department. He said the list does not contain the names of every illegal dispensary operating in the city, but the City Attorney’s Office plans to target other illegal dispensaries as their locations are identified. Approximately 1,000 dispensaries are currently believed to be operating throughout the city. Approximately 130 that were in business before the city passed a moratorium in 2007 will be allowed to stay open if they meet the new standards outlined in the permanent ordinance.

The list contained numerous dispensaries operating illegally in Hollywood, the Wilshire area, and the Melrose/Fairfax Districts. They include the 420 Caregivers at 1253 N. Vine St.; the Westside Healing Center at 6915 Melrose Ave.; Better Alternative Treatment at 7353 Melrose Ave.; Buds on Melrose at 7418 Melrose Ave.; California Herbal Healing Center at 1437 N. La Brea Ave.; Green Medicine at 7318 Melrose Ave.; Hollywood Hills Holistic Medicine at 1915 N. Highland Ave.; L.A. Confidential Caregivers at 7263 Melrose Ave.; the La Luna Collective and Lounge at 7406 Melrose Ave.; as well as many others.

The permanent ordinance stipulates that is illegal to sell, cultivate or distribute marijuana. Dispensaries must be 1,000 feet away from sensitive places such as schools, religious institutions and community centers, and cannot be located adjacent to residential neighborhoods. The ordinance dictates that property owners can be held equally responsible for allowing an illegal dispensary to operate within their buildings. If a property owner is cited, the City Attorney’s Office can also revoke a certificate of occupancy for the location, making it illegal to rent the space in the future.

Local law enforcement officials also said they will begin proactively looking for illegal medical marijuana dispensaries that do not close by June 7. Capt. Peter Whittingham, the commanding officer of patrol for the LAPD’s Hollywood Division, said he believes the dispensary closures will have a positive effect in the community.

“From a law enforcement standpoint, it would be better if we had none, in my opinion, but that decision will be made at the department level,” Whittingham said. “There are a few that we have had problems with and there is a general concern in the community.”

Local residents and neighborhood groups are also being encouraged to help the city enforce the ordinance by identifying dispensaries that do not close and reporting them to the police department. Paul Lerner, the co-founder of the Melrose Action Neighborhood Watch, said he is guardedly optimistic the dispensaries in the Melrose area will close, but said he plans to monitor the situation.

“Our neighborhood watch members will be walking the streets on June 7, and we will be checking to see if any illegal marijuana stores are still open. If they are, we will report that to the city attorney and the LAPD immediately,” Lerner said. “We want this long nightmare to come to an end.”