PAJARO — Nearly one decade ago, Colin Disheroon established Santa Cruz Naturals, a small collective with a simple mission: selling medical marijuana to sick people who needed it.
The thriving Aptos business — along with dispensaries throughout California — was reinvigorated in 2016 when voters approved Proposition 64, legalizing the plant for recreational use.
In this brave new world of cannabis, adults can stroll into dispensaries and browse among several different strains of marijuana, and shop for cannabis-related products such as tinctures, oils and food products.
On Saturday, Santa Cruz Naturals will herald in its second location in Pajaro with a grand opening celebration that includes food, music and visits by elected officials.
The business is the first of its kind in the Pajaro Valley.
Zoned for medical use, the building at 19 San Juan Road was originally designed for Salud Para la Gente, which never occupied it.
The building then sat empty for 15 years until Disheroon, looking for a Watsonville location, realized the medical zoning worked perfectly for the business.
“I’ve worked on this for three years,” he said.
Disheroon’s friend, designer Aaron Porter, took his inspiration from living in Guadalajara, Mexico to create what he calls a “modern Mexican” style.
This will eventually include a mural depicting Cesar Chavez, John Steinbeck and the Ohlone people who once populated the coastal regions. All of these, Disheroon said, are a nod to the people and cultures that shaped the Pajaro Valley.
“We’re really trying to embrace the community,” he said.
Customers of the Pajaro location will pass through a metal detector and then check in at the front desk, where they provide identification and sign a waiver.
After that, a “bud tender” brings the customers into the locked salesroom, a brightly lit place highlighted by custom woodwork.
Once inside, the client can choose from variations of the plant that purportedly induce sleep, or perhaps one that offers a euphoric experience. In either case — or if they are perhaps seeking something to help with pain — the surprisingly well-informed employees can help.
Customers will eventually be able to order their products online and pick them up at a window.
While Prop. 64 has super-charged California’s marijuana industry and largely brought it out of the shadows, customers at the same time are facing local governments that see the sales as a cash cow for tax revenue.
Santa Cruz County customers pay 7 percent, while those in Monterey County pay 5 percent. That number is soon set to increase to 10 percent, Disheroon said.
“If the county increases that further it just puts more pressure on the client,” he said. “And we’re trying to attract business away from the black market. Raising taxes is always a deterrent.”
A fluent Spanish speaker, Disheroon hired a staff that can speak the language and created bilingual menus and signage.
In creating the Pajaro business, Disheroon said he hoped to serve the community that includes Latino, Croatian, Filipino, Portuguese and Japanese people.
“Legalized cannabis appeals more to older, conservative Latinos — many of whom are immigrants — who’ve spent their lives being worried that getting caught with medical marijuana could result in arrest, loss of jobs or even possibly deportation.” Disheroon said. “Now there’s safe access in their neighborhood.”
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The grand opening celebration for the Pajaro location of Santa Cruz Naturals is scheduled for 4 p.m. at 19 San Juan Road.
Watsonville City Councilman Felipe Hernandez and Monterey County Supervisor Luis Alejo will attend the event.
Local band ¿Qiensave? will perform, and local food vendors will be on hand selling their wares.
For information, call 722-2018 or visit santacruzcannabis.com.
