Pubdate: Wed, 16 Jul 2014
Source: Fort Collins Coloradoan (CO)
Copyright: 2014 The Fort Collins Coloradoan
Contact: http://www.coloradoan.com/customerservice/contactus.html
Website: http://www.coloradoan.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1580
Author: Pat Ferrier, The Coloradoan

NEW POT BUSINESS PLANNED IN NORTH FORT COLLINS

A Boulder woman proposes building a retail marijuana product
manufacturing facility on North College Avenue, the 10th potential
pot-related business along the corridor.

Vanay Aquila will present conceptual plans for 1007 N. College Ave. to
the city's planning department for review Monday. A conceptual review
means plans are in the early stages of development.

City planner Noah Beals said city zoning allows pot operations along
North College Avenue.

Aquila's initial plans include 1,200 square feet of manufacturing
space including sinks, refrigerators, freezers, an oven, stove top,
store room and work benches to produce marijuana-infused products.

Aquila was not available for comment Wednesday.

The business would join several medical marijuana facilities and grow
operations that line North College and surrounding streets.

Attracting marijuana-related business is not what members of the North
Fort Collins Business Association had in mind when they began pushing
for economic development north of the Poudre River two decades ago.

"That's been our concern from the very beginning when they were
legalizing all this, that everything would end up on North College,"
said Dean Hoag, president of NFCBA.

If the city gives its OK, there's little business owners can do to
stop the growth of pot-related businesses in North Fort Collins, he
said.

"We definitely need certain things in this area like restaurants and
services ... but it seems like we're getting a mix of marijuana shops
and auto-related business," Hoag said. "We're getting inundated with
all this right now and not getting the type of businesses that we need
up in this area for the citizens and everybody up here."

In June, the first retail recreational pot shop opened in Fort Collins
on East Mountain Avenue, after the city fine-tuned its regulatory
framework for the sale of recreational pot.

The city was already home to nearly a dozen medical marijuana
dispensaries.

North Fort Collins Business Association member Neil McCaffrey groaned
at the suggestion of another marijuana-related business in the
neighborhood, which typically offers cheaper lease rates than some
other parts of the city.

He opposed legalization and said marijuana businesses eat up space
that is available for other types of business. He said it's only a
matter of time before the businesses are targeted for theft.
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