Pubdate: Tue, 16 Dec 2014
Source: Albuquerque Journal (NM)
Copyright: 2014 The Associated Press
Contact:  http://www.abqjournal.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/10
Author: Kristen Wyatt, the Associated Press
Page: B1

COLO. SKI TOWNS FRET OVER LEGAL POT'S IMPACT

BRECKENRIDGE, Colo. (AP) - Business is booming in Colorado's mountain 
resorts, and the addition of recreational marijuana stores this year 
has attracted customers curious about legalized pot. But there's 
mounting anxiety that ski towns have embraced stoner culture a little 
too much, potentially damaging the state's tourism brand.

That worry flared up in two resort towns last week. In Breckenridge, 
residents voted overwhelmingly to force downtown's lone dispensary 
off Main Street to a less visible location. And just up the road in 
Granby, town officials used a property annexation to prevent a 
dispensary from opening.

"It's not a morality issue, or that we think marijuana is bad," said 
Breckenridge councilman Gary Gallagher, who supported legal marijuana 
but also voted to force the Breckenridge Cannabis Club out of 
downtown. "Marijuana, it is not in this country's DNA yet. It's a 
little bit too early."

So far, there's no indication legal pot has damaged tourism, 
Colorado's No. 2 industry. The state notched a record $17.3 billion 
in tourism spending the year after legalization, with a record 64.6 
million visitors, and state officials say 2014 is poised to top last 
year's record.

But it's an open question whether pot has anything to do with it. 
Officials cite the improving economy and the weather, with healthy 
snow totals historically being the most significant driver for mountain visits.

The state and its marijuana industry are barred by law from 
advertising weed out of state, and the head of the Colorado Tourism 
Office says the state isn't tracking the role of marijuana in tourist behavior.

"It's all anecdotal," Al White said. "I have heard from some angry 
parents who said they'll never come back to Colorado because of 
marijuana. And I've also heard from people who say they came to 
Colorado just to see the marijuana. At the end of the day, it may be 
having a modest effect, but it's not huge either way."

The recent friction isn't the first time officials have moved to 
lower marijuana's profile.

The nation's largest ski operator, Vail Resorts, made headlines over 
the last year for tearing down makeshift shelters built illicitly in 
hard-to-reach areas and used by stoners to "get safe," mountain slang 
for toking up out of the cold and away from ski patrollers.

Some say the marijuana novelty will die down naturally and that 
resort towns shouldn't worry about dispensaries or the souvenir shops 
that put "Rocky Mountain High" puns on T-shirts.

"In five or 10 years, it'll be no big issue," said Bill Kiser, a 
Breckenridge retiree who voted to keep the dispensary on Main Street.
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