Pubdate: Fri, 09 Apr 2010
Source: Pueblo Chieftain (CO)
Copyright: 2010 The Pueblo Chieftain
Contact:  http://www.chieftain.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1613
Author: Peter Roper

COUNTY TAKES FIRST LOOK AT MEDICAL POT RULES

But officials still hope the Legislature deals with the
issue.

Pueblo County commissioners are beginning to cobble  together
regulations for overseeing medical marijuana  growers and
dispensaries, although much of the work  will depend on what help city
and county governments  get from the Legislature.

Two measures are being considered in the Legislature to  address the
licensing medical marijuana stores, called  dispensaries. But Pueblo
County, like Pueblo city  government, has a moratorium on granting any
business  or sales tax license to those businesses before the  county
adopts its own regulations.

Kim Headley, the county's planning director, walked the  commissioners
through the rough draft of a licensing  plan Thursday morning. It
would limit locations for  growing marijuana to agriculture zones in
the county  and require they be indoor. Dispensaries would be  limited
to B-4 business zones, but could not be closer  than 1,000 feet from
schools, residential areas,  churches, and other public uses.

Currently there are four known dispensaries in the  county, and at
least two would not be in compliance  with the proposed regulations,
Headley said.

"We've been clear all along that none of these  dispensaries would be
grandfathered into compliance if  they don't meet our final
regulations," Headley told  the commissioners. He added that county
officials have  notified the two dispensaries that have opened since
the moratorium that they are out of compliance.

The dispensaries are operating in a hazy legal realm.  While it is
still against federal law to possess, grow  or sell marijuana, state
voters approved Amendment 20  nine years ago to legalize the medical
use of  marijuana.

County officials, including Sheriff Kirk Taylor, have  taken a
wait-and-see approach to the fledgling  businesses. As long as the
dispensaries do not cause  other crime problems, county deputies and
city police  have left the dispensaries alone for the time being --
acting on the assumption the Legislature would give  local governments
regulations and guidelines for  dealing with the marijuana businesses.

Commissioner Anthony Nunez said the county needs to be  cautious and
not use county regulations as a defacto  ban on the establishment of
any dispensaries.

"If these businesses are legal and we have the ability  to tax them,
I'd hate to see us create such strict  regulations that all of them go
over the border to El  Paso or Fremont counties," Nunez said.

Headley said the Legislature is looking at measures  that include
strict background reviews for dispensary  owners and other limitations
on the businesses.

"From what I'm hearing, as many as 60 percent of all  these
dispensaries could have to close up once the  Legislature is done
adopting regulations," he said.

Commission Chairman Jeff Chostner warned that there was  a chance the
Legislature would stall on the marijuana  issue and not reach
agreement on how to regulate it.

"That would leave us in a situation where we wouldn't  expect any
guidance until next January at the earliest,  and I don't think we can
afford to wait that long," he  said.

Headley said Thursday's discussion was a preliminary  review of how
the county might regulate the marijuana  stores and growers. The
commissioners are not likely to  take any action on a policy until
after the Legislature  adjourns in May. 
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