A Bay Area pot club owner says he wants to try his hand at public service. Buddy’s Cannabis Patient Collective owner Matt Lucero is running for Mountain View City Council.
Buddy’s, which originally opened in Mountain View on April 10, closed its doors on July 6 due to the city's temporary ban on pot dispensaries.
Lucero credits his Mountain View customers for his decision to run for the November race, saying "scores and scores" of them have been pushing for it.
Referring to the need for medical marijuana in that city Lucero says, "They want this. They need this. And Mountain View has closed their ears."
Lucero currently resides in Campbell, but plans to relocate to Mountain View by the end of the month—just in time to file papers.
After his Mountain View location closed, Lucero opened up shop in Sunnyvale. But he's having legal issues at his new location as well. Sunnyvale also has a temporary dispensary ban. Lucero says Sunnyvale cops handed him $20,000 worth of citations in a 3-day period.
Lucero said he will continue talking with Sunnyvale’s City Council in order operate under their rules. "I’m not looking for a battle with Sunnyvale," he said.
The easy way out is to move Buddy’s to San Jose where there are 65 dispensaries, Lucero said. "I couldn’t, in good conscience, leave the area,” Lucero said. “I want to stay and help the folks who have joined.”
Aside from Buddy’s, there are no pot dispensaries between San Jose and San Francisco. Lucero’s main concern is keeping one open for those in need living in the peninsula.
"The issue is about apathy," Lucero said. "City Council has become apathetic of the needs of their residents. Their motivation is to perpetuate their own existence. They don’t care and don’t listen to the citizens of Mountain View."
