1. CALIFORNIA TO PERMIT WEED SALES AT OUTSIDE LANDS FESTIVAL: Outside Lands in San Francisco will be the first major music festival in the U.S. to sell cannabis and allow consumption on site. California’s Bureau of Cannabis Control approved the sale and consumption of weed in a fenced-off area of the festival grounds for people 21 and older. Los Angeles Times: “The state approval came shortly after San Francisco granted its own permit for cannabis use at the event in Golden Gate Park. Other festivals in the city where illegal cannabis use has occurred in the past may also get permits, officials said. ‘Permitting Grass Lands as the inaugural event is the first step in creating a safe cannabis event space for those aged 21 years and older,’ said Marisa Rodriguez, director of the San Francisco Office of Cannabis. ‘Attendees will be able to purchase and consume lab-tested products away from the rest of the venue’s attendees.’”
2. HOTEL SUSTAINABILITY PRACTICES MAY UNINTENTIONALLY HURT CHARITIES: It’s no secret that hotels are going greener; InterContinental Hotels Group recently banned mini toiletries in most hotel rooms and Marriott International also did the same while banning plastic straws. But the effort to become more sustainable may hurt charities like Thrive DC, a nonprofit that helps Washington’s homeless, which rely on traveler donations of mini bottles of shampoo, body wash, lotion, and other grooming products. Adweek: “If someone is unable to find shelter, they often travel with only a backpack or sleeping bag, according to Jack Read at Thrive DC. When they’re relying on public facilities, smaller toiletries become an indispensable asset. The miniatures are an ‘effective way to get exactly the right products that people in a transient mode need,’ said David Jones, C.E.O. of the Bowery Mission in New York, which provides more than 240 showers a week to the city’s homeless population, dispensing over 180,000 care kits a year containing the miniature soaps and shampoos they receive from hotel partnerships.”
3. WOMAN DIES FROM LEGIONNAIRES’ AFTER STAYING IN SHERATON IN ATLANTA: A woman who contracted Legionnaires’ disease from a Sheraton hotel in Atlanta has died, according to the Georgia Department of Public Health. The health department said there has been 12 lab-confirmed cases of the disease linked to the hotel and 61 probable cases. The Sheraton closed three weeks ago after three guests who had recently visited there tested positive for the disease. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution: “The suspected cases have not been been confirmed in a lab, but they include people who had illnesses consistent with Legionnaires’ disease, such as pneumonia, the DPH said in a news release. … Investigators have yet to determine whether the hotel is indeed the source of the outbreak, but the Sheraton Atlanta will remain closed until at least August 11.”