Pubdate: Wed, 08 Feb 2012
Source: Daily Targum (Rutgers, NJ Edu)
Copyright: 2012 Daily Targum
Contact:  http://www.dailytargum.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/715

TOWNSHIPS SHOULD WELCOME POT CENTERS

Former Gov. John S. Corzine signed the New Jersey Compassionate Use
Medical Marijuana Act in January 2010, effectively making the state
the 14th in the country to legalize marijuana for medical purposes.
Yet in the two years that followed, little progress was made regarding
efforts to open up dispensaries or growing facilities within the state.

Since the law's signing, state-approved centers beginning operations
have faced a sluggish response from both the state's health department
and a certain unwillingness to accommodate their facilities from N.J.
townships. Only two out of the six centers have found homes thus far,
including Greenleaf Compassion Center in Montclair, and more recently,
Compassionate Care Foundation in Egg Harbor Township.

The slow-going development of medical marijuana centers in the state
may come as a surprise to many, like us, who viewed the passing of the
act as the final step in bringing relief to hundreds of patients
across the Garden State. Yet it seems public perception of the drug
has yet to catch up with state legislation, as many municipalities
continue to protest against these centers taking root within their
borders.

Compassionate Care, for example, was previously denied their requests
to develop a facility in Westhampton by a land-use board. The mayor of
Egg Harbor Township has since given permission to set up a growing
facility off Delilah Avenue. Montclair's Greenleaf Compassion Center
was also given little support from the health department in opening
their dispensary.

On the one hand, the municipalities seem justified in choosing to keep
medical marijuana centers away. After all, the signing of a state law
legalizing medical marijuana does not necessitate the actual presence
of medical marijuana in the state -- and it seems many still have
negative views of the drug. But towns must also realize that the use
of marijuana for medical reasons is extremely beneficial for certain
patients suffering from disease, chronic sickness and cancer, and was
legalized specifically to bring these benefits to individuals across
the state.

Measures should be taken on the state level -- including possible tax
incentives -- to encourage townships to more willingly accommodate
these centers, and the state's health department should play a more
active role in promoting their potential benefits. Political delays
should not inhibit the development of N.J. medical marijuana
facilities.
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MAP posted-by: Matt