Local collective focuses on patients' needs

B-Town’s Best Buds, a new medical marijuana collective at 28785 Highway 190, was busy with activity Tuesday afternoon.

The new establishment, described as a medical marijuana collective by manager Jared Lawson, opened its doors roughly a week ago next door to Lake Express Market.

Though Lawson said the collective was initially going in at a building about a mile down the road, the new establishment is not to be confused with a new lingerie and gift shop at at 28420 Highway 190, known as High Dreams. (High Dreams was mistakenly identified as a pot dispensary in Tuesday’s Recorder.)

BTBB, formerly from Bakersfield, moved to Tulare County after Kern County voters passed Measure G, a measure that limited where marijuana dispensaries could operate in that county.

The new collective is currently struggling to keep its doors open in Tulare County, as its location is not zoned for commercial development, Lawson said.

“Basically, without the owner’s prior knowledge, in 2004 the county rezoned it for recreational use only,” he said. “We’re in talks with our attorney with what our options are, but as of right now, the 23rd is when we’re supposed to close our doors.”

If the collective is forced to shut down, the owners are hoping to move somewhere near the current location.

However, on Tuesday, Tulare County supervisors passed an interim ordinance prohibiting any new such operations from opening in the county over the next 45 days.

“We’re going to continue to keep something in this area. We’re going to definitely stick it out and see how we can make it in the long run,” Lawson said.

New medical marijuana patients looking to become members of the collective must present an original and valid doctor’s recommendation and a valid California identification. Once a member, patients will be assisted by a counter person in uniform into the main area.

“We try to open up a dialogue with patients to see what their needs are — we’re a pharmacy.

Whether you have anxiety problems or need pain management, proper dosage is something we’re going to have to determine,” Lawson said.

The main area, where only members and employees are allowed, contains displays with different types of medication, Lawson said.

“We have things separated — sativas, indicas and hybrids — to help people with their particular ailment. Our counter persons are kept up on what works best for what ailment,” he said.

Lawson said that while the collective does not provide patients with apparatus, they do make recommendations and usually suggest vaporizers or edibles.

As membership grows, so does the supply, Lawson said, adding that the new collective appears to be the only one of its kind in the South County.