City Revokes State Street Dispensary Permit

A medical marijuana dispensary app­roved for 3617 State Street had its permit revoked by city officials. Applicant Joe Allen, a longtime Santa Barbara attorney, attempted to remove his partners, Matt Armor and Greg McGee, from the permit, according to city records.

“The reason that matters is that the existing ordinance is based on a cooperative or collective business model,” not a profit-making enterprise, City Attorney Ariel Calonne said. He added, “There appeared to be a dispute among the named collective members [about] who had authority to do what.” Calonne declined to elaborate further.

The name of the shop is Santa Barbara Patients Collective and Healing Center. Details surrounding the internal dispute remain fuzzy as of press time. The Planning Commission will hold a hearing on the matter on September 7. The commission first conditionally approved the permit in 2015. Susan Reardon, city hearing officer, revoked the permit two months ago after details about the transfer of management came to light.

The medical marijuana dispensary was one of three pot shops allowed in the City of Santa Barbara. Another pot shop, proposed for 2609 De la Vina Street, was recently approved by the Planning Commission. For two years, neighbors have complained that the dispensary would cause concerns about security and odors in the uptown neighborhood. They also worried their property values would drop. Attorneys for neighbors have 10 days to appeal to the City Council.