Pot Growers' Superstore Opens in Oakland

(KPIX San Francisco)  What's being billed as the Bay Area's largest full service marijuana superstore opened in Oakland filled with the enthusiastic support of local politicians, reports CBS Station KPIX in San Francisco. But don't expect to buy any pot there.

The very first customers Thursday at the iGrow store on Hegenberger Road found a doctor ready to help with a medical marijuana prescription, even a massage therapist. The actual plant however was nowhere on site.

"Basically we have everything you would need for medicinal marijuana except for the plants itself. So everything from the systems to the nutrients to the pest control," said operations manager Justin Jorgenson.

In other words, it's not a pot club. It's a gardening supply store that sales sophisticated hydroponic systems to help you grow your own-whether that's pot, tomatoes or roses.

"We're saying look, we'll openly talk to people about marijuana if they have the correct documentation," Jorgenson said.

Three city council members have said they would attend the ribbon cutting Thursday evening for a business they hope will create much-needed jobs and generate tax revenue.

The doors of iGrow opened as San Jose debates whether to regulate pot clubs, and as activists gather signatures for a November 2010 ballot measure to legalize possession of small amounts of marijuana without a doctor's note.

Leaders of the campaign backing the measure said volunteers would submit around 700,000 signatures Thursday across all 58 California counties.

The initiative needs about 434,000 signatures from registered voters to make the ballot. Campaigners typically try to collect far more to build a cushion in case some signatures are invalidated.

The Regulate, Control and Tax Cannabis Act of 2010 would legalize possession of small amounts of marijuana for adults. It also would allow limited growing on private property and would permit local governments to decide whether to legalize and tax pot sales.

Watch local video from CBS Station KPIX in San Francisco:

Local Video from CBS 5 in San Francisco

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[bankalchemist]

Community Bank of the Bay supports all of Oaklands local businesses and the community. For more information email Brian Garrett [e-mail] Merchant services available. See us on www.budhopper.com

[CBSisCommunist5]

Thats what we need here in Oakland-MORE POT...that will make everything better

[msjb1]

As many people that use wacky weed if we got as much tax on it as tobacco we would be rolling in dough and we should be able to add a fat tax as on soft drinks cause I hear people get the munchies after smoking, won't that hurt the people as bad as smoking tobacco products. And we can quit putting people in jail for using wacky weed, also let all of them out of jail that are in for using weed. I can see where this would really work out great, also another benefit would be selling plants, and tools to cultivate plants, It might even work to put some of the people back to work growing it and selling it.

[Conservative_1976]

Hey, thesevenveils commentor, please don't paint us fundamental Christians as bad guys. We've lived through our share of religious persecution and as a general thing we are NOT for trying to mandate other people's lives. The control-tyrants are generally NOT expressing Christian values, at least not by any criteria laid out by Jesus Christ (imo).

That said, as an aging American who suspects that marijuana will be found to be genuinely helpful in the relief of arthritis and other aches and pains, I find it truly sad that anyone would try to make it more difficult for someone to use marijuana for relief of pain, improvement of appetite, or any of the other valuable uses of marijuana. The tax money that is wasted on marijuana arrests, prosecution, prison, and forced "treatment" costs the U.S. taxpayers billions of dollars every year, billions that are therefore NOT available for schools, health care, fighting terrorism, repairing our roads and bridges, and a hundred other vitally important social needs. Surely no one believes that imprisoning Americans for using a plant is a better use of our limited resources than educating our children, maintaining our infrastructure, and keeping our families safe from foreign terrorists?
Let's put the drug dealing criminals out of business and free up our tax dollars to meet America's real needs. Let's tax and regulate marijuana, and let's let ordinary Americans grow a little marijuana in their own back yards, maybe $100 a year for a permit to grow a dozen plants.

[ky7474]

Amen!

[iirishamerican]

I think I wouls smoke some pot before I would take any tylonol, or how about some of those other legal drugs with the list of sideffects longer then my arm, swollen throat, diabeties, stroke, chest pain, trouble breathing, etc. and if you should experience death contact a doctor immediatly. Common now, really, and I can't smoke a joint. Get real and LEGALIZE IT ALREADY. Marijuana would probably put several drug companies out of business, could that be one reason they haven't legalized it.

[AttentionDeficit]

iirishamerican: include alcohol pushers in with that. i don't think anheuser-busch is in any hurry to have to compete with pot, homegrown or otherwise

[AttentionDeficit]

edgy: as the harm caused by the drugs is relative, so is the amount necessary for treatment. according to every study i have read about, pot is the least difficult to give up. no (or very minor) physical withdrawal symptoms occur when giving up weed. in my own experience, quittin caffiene (i may have spelled that wrong) caused more physical discomfort than the times at which i had no weed. prohibition of pot just pushes people toward more dangerous (to the individual as well as to society) drugs

[berlinfoto-2009]

In the past federal law enforcement has done some mighty strange, and elaborate things, in order to entrap people, sometimes just to identify people who think certain ways.
RFID Microchips come in many sizes, many products have them, and they can be scanned and identified by a device, in passing car, as it drives in front of your house.
If I was going to grow marijuana in my home I would purchase all the necessary fertilizer, growing media, containers, pots and lighting and what ever, at a regular garden store. And I would then check them all. for RFID Microchips, very carefully.
Could this store be a CIA cutout, or a Sting operation of the Drug Enforcement Administration?
Quote "In 1953, the CIA made plans to purchase ten kilograms of LSD for use in "drug experiments with animals and human beings." ", OPERATION MIND CONTROL" written by Walter Bowart.

[DocD--2008]

by edgy44 January 29, 2010 1:58 AM EST
"Immoral is smoking dope while Mexicans deliver your fix, and die by the thousands (over 10,000). Why not just kill your family and say your fix is more important than anyones life."

Just in case you aren't aware, the majority does not come from Mexico, and far more than 10,000 die every year due to tobacco and alcohol not even needing to be combined in the US. Until those are made illegal, your argument against Marijuana is baseless. Not to mention as stated by others, legalizing it will LOWER the criminal activities, is that not what the war on drugs is intended to do???

Maybe if you smoked (or quit drinking so much), you wouldn't be so edgy.... How many years was marijuana legal compared to illegal, over 5000 years?

[CBSisCommunist5]

Great. Thats just what Oakland needs. More drugs.

[ky7474]

Immoral is in the eyes of the beholder. Not everyone chooses to live in fear of things they don't understand. Zero tolerance policies, now that's immoral.

[edgy44]

Immoral is smoking dope while Mexicans deliver your fix, and die by the thousands (over 10,000). Why not just kill your family and say your fix is more important than anyones life.

[AttentionDeficit]

edgy44: if we continue to want this prohibition, people will continue to want to make prohibitive profits on illegal weed. take out the mega profits and the criminal activity diminishes immediately and drastically