Medjool to Become Giant Pot Club

Medjool, the recently shuttered bro bar and famed rooftop patio drink spot, is slated to become a distribution center for the noted terror drug known as marijuana.

According to a plan circulated to neighbors by the SF Planning Department, the so-called “medical cannabis dispensary” (to be called “Morado Collective”) will move into the front half of the building. The remaining second half will be left untouched as a restaurant space, scheduled to become Beretta's new Argentinian-influenced concept “Lolinda.”

Given that two Mission District pot clubs have been shut down in recent months (including the Shambhala Healing Center, just one block north), our tipster, Jonathan, doesn't believe that the building owner actually intends to open a pot club.  He theorizes:

This isn't [Gus Murad's] plan at all; he's putting this up for approval so it'll be shot down, as part of a longer negotiation for something else. We weren't going to approve your Marina-crowd tapas bar, but since the alternative was a pot dispensary, here's a rubber stamp.

While that's entirely possible—after all, Gus Murad has been known for his planning antics in the past—it seems as though a lot of work has been put into the potential dispensary.  According to an interview in the SF Examiner with the operator of the club, Eduardo Morales, “the dispensary would be part of a 'pharmacy and respite care' complex for the gay Hispanic community,” with a portion of the revenues going towards the HIV/AIDS prevention non-profit AGUILAS.

No word yet when they plan to open, but the Planning Commission is set to review the application on August 16th.