LA Sees Weed Dispensary Boom
May 20th, 2009 by RussIt seems that Los Angeles will be the first US test-case city for legalization. This isn’t because of any recently passed referendum, or new decriminalization ordinance; it’s simply due to the city’s laissez-faire attitude towards the opening of weed-selling storefronts.
According to the LAist, Los Angeles remains the only city in California that imposes no taxes or start up fees onto prospective weed dispensaries. By contrast, San Fransisco applicants pay $8,400 to open a shop, and Oakland dispensaries are charged upwards of $30,000 in yearly fees.
Combined with a legal loophole that allows new dispensaries to open upon claiming any kind of “hardship” to get around wait lists and zoning regulations, there is literally a completely open market for Angelino medical herb. Hundreds upon hundreds of weed shops are opening up in Los Angeles, and by unofficial counts have out-expanded Starbucks.
One would think that conservative economists and Adam Smith disciples would be keenly interested in Los Angeles’s weed experiement. Given the economic forces of nature at hand, this de facto legalization of weed has created the only sector of any economy that can claim a full-fledged boom.
