Report funded by Guidiville casino backer recommends pot farm

Tuesday, November 16, 2010  

If the Guidiville Band of Pomo Indians can't use a site in Richmond, California, for a casino then the next best use is a medical marijuana farm, according to a study funded by the tribe's developer.

Upstream provided $50,000 for the study. It was intended as way to help the city consider alternatives to the proposed $1.2 billion Point Molate Resort.

"The alternatives report echoed what anybody familiar with the real estate market will tell you," Upstream managing partner Jim Levine Levine told The Contra Costa Times. "Unless you get a motivated wealthy single user like Oracle or Google or Microsoft to want to come in and adopt a site, it's a tough site in the real estate world. We need realistic economic development."

Voters in Richmond rejected the casino by a wide margin. The referendum was non-binding but it could affect the city's dealings with the tribe.

The Bureau of Indian Affairs has released a draft environmental impact statement and environmental impact report on the casino.

Get the Story:
No Point Molate casino? How about a pot farm? (The Contra Costa Times 11/15)

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