Larchmont Bungalow to Become Pot Shop?

A sign on the door of the now shuttered Larchmont Bungalow restaurant, announcing that the “Larchmont Collective” will be opening soon, has created quite a buzz in the neighborhood. The sign appeared last week…and when photos were posted on local social media, they generated numerous comments both pro and con. The Buzz also received many text messages and e-mails asking if this could be true.

So we set out to find out whether the collective announcement is real…or whether it might have beeen posted as a joke, possibly to irk those who supported enforcement of the “Q” conditions on Larchmont, which the Bungalow had been violating since opening in 2009.

First, it’s worth pointing out, the note is posted on the outside of the door, which means anyone could have put it there…so there’s at least a good chance it is just a hoax.  Also, medical marijuana dispensaries are very highly regulated at the moment, and no new ones are being permitted in the city. When laws change next year, and more kinds of marijuana sales are legalized, there will likely be a full permitting process in place, so people won’t be able to open new sales outlets without considerable city and community review.

To further check out the possible legitimacy of the sign, the Buzz tried to contact the Larchmont Bungalow’s attorney, but the query generated an out-of-office reply until mid-September. Officials in City Council Member David Ryu’s office said they were not aware of the matter, but that they would look into it. And, finally, searches of city databases for permits and entitlement applications show no new permits or conditional use applications, of any sort, on file for 107 N. Larchmont Blvd.

So that’s what we know at the moment. But we’ll continue to look around, and we’ll be sure to share any news we learn about future tenants in the Bungalow space, as soon as we have verifiable information.