Pubdate: Mon, 20 Jun 2016
Source: Denver Post (CO)
Copyright: 2016 The Denver Post Corp
Contact:  http://www.denverpost.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/122
Author: Rachel Riley, The Gazette

GROUP WANTS VOTERS TO STOP SALES

Commissioner Is Open to a Ballot Question but Suspects a Ban Is Unlikely.

Legal recreational marijuana and a low cost of living have drawn 
growers, sellers and users to the Pueblo area, but a group of 
residents hopes to change that.

Citizens for a Healthy Pueblo submitted petitions to the county and 
state that, if approved, will place measures to ban commercial 
cultivation and sales of recreational marijuana in the city and 
county of Pueblo in November.

"We've had this for almost 2 1/2 years, we see what it looks like, 
and we don't want it for our community," said Charlene Graham, the 
group's chairwoman.

In 2012, Colorado voters approved Amendment 64, which legalized 
recreational marijuana in Colorado. An opt-out provision allows 
municipalities to prohibit commercial recreational marijuana 
facilities within their jurisdiction. As of April, 168 of the state's 
cities and towns, including Colorado Springs, prohibit the commercial 
sale and growth of recreational marijuana, according to the Colorado 
Municipal League.

Anne Stattelman, executive director of Pueblo nonprofit Posada, said 
her organization has seen a 54 percent increase in people requesting 
their services since 2014. Last year, 273 households that received 
help were families that moved to Pueblo from out of state because 
marijuana is legal, Stattelman said.

Pueblo County revenues related to marijuana facilities, including 
property taxes and license fees, generated more than $1.8 million in 
2014 and $2.1 million in 2015, according to Pueblo County 
Commissioner Sal Pace's office.

Pace said he is open to a ballot question barring commercial retail 
marijuana, although its approval is unlikely. "Seeing that the voters 
passed Amendment 64 by a larger margin in Pueblo than statewide, I 
suspect that the voters will side with keeping the hundreds of jobs 
and millions of dollars in economic investment and tax revenue."
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom