Pubdate: Wed, 25 May 2011 Source: Chico Enterprise-Record (CA) Copyright: 2011 Chico Enterprise-Record Contact: http://www.chicoer.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/861 Author: Roger H. Aylworth, Staff Writer POT ORDINANCE PASSED GRIDLEY - All medical marijuana gardens in unincorporated Butte County will be banned on lots smaller than a half-acre and within 1,000 feet of schools, churches and other facilities, and numbers of plants will be limited on larger properties. Those are among the requirements of the ordinance that has been the focus of three public hearings in three different cities since February. Following Tuesday's hearing at the Butte County Fairgrounds in Gridley, the supervisors voted 4-1 to adopt the ordinance. The measure, which is a land use and not a criminal measure, goes into effect in 30 days. Under the ordinance, six mature plants can be grown on parcels between a half-acre and 1.5 acres. As the lot size increases so do the number of plants allowed. The number tops out at 99 plants on property of more than 160 acres. Regardless of the acreage, no marijuana can be cultivated within 1,000 feet of a school, school bus stop, park, church, or residential drug treatment facility. The ordinance also requires that growers be Butte County residents and requires the landowner of rented land be notified of any grows. Growers on anything larger than 1.5 acres will have to obtain a $285 permit from the county's Department of Development Services. As in the previous hearings in the Supervisors Chambers in Oroville and in the Elks Lodge in Chico, dozens of opponents of the ordinance told the supervisors of their desperate need for their "medicine." Some charged that prohibiting gardens on the smallest lots amounted to economic discrimination, favoring those who could afford larger parcels. Many threatened to recall the board if they approved the ordinance. Fliers outlining the steps necessary to conduct a recall were distributed in the crowd. But others said the county needed to protect non-growers from the smell of the maturing plants and the dangers of criminals raiding medical marijuana gardens. When Supervisor Steve Lambert, who chairs the panel, closed public testimony, Chico Supervisor Maureen Kirk offered an amended proposal that would have allowed more plants on parcels, and reduced some of the other limitations on cultivation. That proposal died for lack of a second. Oroville Supervisor Bill Connelly moved the ordinance be approved as written. Paradise Supervisor Kim Yamaguchi seconded his motion. Connelly said he has had numerous contacts with citizens who told him of the negative impacts of nearby gardens. He did point out enforcement of the ordinance would be "complaint driven" and county code enforcement officers will not be on the hunt for violators. Chico Supervisor Larry Wahl said he would vote no because the proposal neither went far enough to protect the safety of the citizens nor preserved the right of the non-grower to the "quiet enjoyment" of their property. He said he was opposed to making some aspect of marijuana cultivation legal when it remains illegal under federal law. "This law does not solve the problem we have here in Butte County," Wahl said. Lambert and Connelly said they wanted to review the ordinance later in the year to see how it worked. The board approved it with Wahl as the only dissenter. County Counsel Bruce Alpert said the ordinance applies even in non-conforming gardens that have already been planted. If there are complaints about the gardens they will be "abated," according to Alpert and Tim Snellings, director of the county Department of Development Services. - --- MAP posted-by: Richard R Smith Jr.