Pubdate: Wed, 31 Mar 2010 Source: Delta County Independent (CO) Copyright: 2010 Delta County Independent Contact: http://mapinc.org/url/5y9TXXEE Website: http://www.deltacountyindependent.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/5139 Author: Hank Lohmeyer Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/mmj.htm (Cannabis - Medicinal) Bookmark: http://mapinc.org/topic/Dispensaries ORCHARD CITY WAITING FOR STATE TO CLARIFY MARIJUANA DISPENSARY RULES A woman in the audience at the Orchard City town board meeting March 10 cried out loudly "no" when Mayor Don Suppes announced that the one known marijuana dispensary in Orchard City was moving and expanding. Suppes announced that Jay Deason's Grand Mesa Herbal Dispensary, Orchard City's only publicly known legal marijuana outlet, would be relocating to a new, highly visible Hwy. 65 location. Trustee Gale Doudy said the town should have "done its homework" on the moratorium it passed three months ago so that expanding or moving existing dispensaries would have been prohibited also. "Is there anything we can do," a woman asked the board form the audience. Suppes replied that the town is waiting on a court appeal of a district court ruling in Centennial stating that a city cannot prohibit dispensaries on the basis that marijuana possession, sale, and use is against federal law. "The state has yet to really step forward and help us out either," Suppes said. "There are several ideas, but nothing is being followed through on so far." The Trustee Medical Marijuana Committee is "sitting in limbo waiting for the state to make a legislative decision" on regulation of the legal marijuana shops, Suppes explained Other county municipalities are also waiting for a legal lead from the state legislature on regulating pot in their own jurisdictions, he explained. The Orchard City Board of Trustees moved through an agenda of routine business items including the following: The board approved Ordinance 2010-02 that makes certain administrative changes in the setting of meeting agendas. The main effect is expected to be removal of the "second constituent time" from trustee meetings. There was one comment from the public opposed to making the change. The vote to approve was unanimous. The board approved an "emergency facility agreement" with Senior Community Care at Horizons. The agreement specifies that the town hall community room may be used as an emergency facility for patrons of the senior care program in the event that an alternate location for them becomes temporarily necessary. Trustee Jimmie Boyd reported that official rights filings have been made on source water recently acquired by the town, and also on two of its diversion points on Grand Mesa. The park committee reported that the pavilion structure for Orchard City Park has been ordered and erection will begin soon. The town administrator reported that funds from the county sales tax and the highway users tax are in line with lowered 2010 budget projections. The four candidates for trustee in the April 6 municipal election were introduced. - --- MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom