Are Cannabis Lounges Coming to Seattle Soon?

Washington’s current cannabis law allows for the sale and consumption of recreational cannabis. This law legalizes smoking weed in the state, however, it does not allow for cannabis consumption in public. In order to enforce this aspect of the law, the city attorney of Seattle, Pete Holmes, has come out in public support of cannabis clubs in Washington.

Recreational weed lounges have already been opening up in Colorado since January 2013. Colorado’s Amendment 64 prohibits public weed consumption, and smoke-free laws also rule out indoor smoke sessions. But Robert Corry, attorney of Colorado’s Club 64 found a loophole, arguing that private weed venues are legal under Amendment 64 because cannabis is not being sold in the clubs, even if people are smoking there. These cannabis lounges will give tourists, and those who live on rental property where cannabis use is prohibited, a place they can go to legally enjoy weed.

“This type of club has been talked about since December 2012, since I-502 became law,” said Kevin Oliver, executive director of Washington National Organization for the Reform for Marijuana Laws. “The state legislature could potentially modify the law to allow for adult use clubs, sans sales, just a place where it was legal for adults to smoke marijuana. I believe the rationale is, as long as we can have bars and designated smoking area for cigarettes, we should be able to have a smoking lounge for adult use marijuana.”

So far the proposed regulations will only allow adults to enter the lounges, establish ventilation rules, create a vaporizer only policy, and ban alcohol (I guess they don’t want people getting cross faded in the lounges). A concern surrounding these lounges however, is whether or not a venue that caters to weed smokers will encourage them to drive from these locations while high, although it has already been established that driving high is far less dangerous than driving under the influence of alcohol.

For business owners, the increased acceptance of venues such as the cannabis lounges leads to the question: how long until legislation is created, which would allow for cannabis business franchises?

“I can certainly imagine the possibility of a Starbucks for marijuana on the horizon,” Oliver said. “However, for retail stores to sell marijuana over-the-counter and then allow you to sit and smoke, it would require both an amendment to the law and a re-write of the Washington State Liquor Control board rules governing retail transactions and establishments.”