cannabisnews.com: Denver Stricter on Pot

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  Denver Stricter on Pot

Posted by CN Staff on January 12, 2010 at 07:41:19 PT
By John Ingold, The Denver Post 
Source: Denver Post  

Colorado -- Denver's City Council approved a broad set of regulations for the city's booming medical-marijuana industry Monday night over the objections of dozens of cannabis advocates who say the rules clamp down too hard on their businesses.The regulations require the licensing of medical-marijuana dispensaries, impose 1,000-foot buffers between the shops and schools or child-care facilities, bar on-site marijuana consumption, mandate certain security procedures and prohibit felons from opening a dispensary.
"We did our jobs, and we should hold our heads high for what we were able to do in this first phase," said Councilman Charlie Brown, who pushed for the ordinance.The council unanimously approved the ordinance at the close of a nearly four-hour meeting. During the public hearing that preceded the vote, dozens of dispensary owners, medical-marijuana patients and cannabis advocates urged the council to reject the regulations, calling them unconstitutional and over-reaching.Speakers particularly singled out the 1,000-foot buffers, which medical-marijuana lawyer Rob Corry said amount to a "de facto ban" on new dispensaries in Denver. Other speakers focused on the Dec. 15, 2009, cutoff date for dispensaries to be exempted from the spacing requirements, saying that it is unconstitutionally retroactive and would force hundreds of businesses to close their doors."Many of these regulations are not reasonable regulations," attorney Lauren Davis told council members. "They are strangulations that will hurt patients and caregivers."A smaller number of Denver residents — including a trio of moms from the Stapleton neighborhood concerned about plans for a dispensary to open several hundred feet from a school — spoke in favor of the ordinance, arguing for even tougher spacing restrictions. They cited concerns about crime at dispensaries. Council members said they received phone calls and e-mails from many more residents expressing concerns about the explosion of dispensaries."What about the exposure of our children to this kind of activity and crime that has accompanied some dispensaries?" Christie Gosch asked council members.A number of council members, while supporting the ordinance, also acknowledged that it represented more of a starting point for Denver's medical-marijuana regulations than a finish line."This is a very hard issue; this is the first time we've ever had to deal with this," said Councilman Paul Lopez. "It's not going to be perfect. We're going to work on this in the years to come." Snipped   Complete Article: http://www.denverpost.com/news/ci_14170284Source: Denver Post (CO)Author: John Ingold, The Denver PostPublished: January 12, 2010Copyright: 2010 The Denver Post CorpWebsite: http://www.denverpost.com/Contact: openforum denverpost.comCannabisNews Medical Marijuana Archiveshttp://cannabisnews.com/news/list/medical.shtml 

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Comment #3 posted by rchandar on January 13, 2010 at 16:06:16 PT:

Can't Win 'Em All
Okay, folks, Colorado is a conservative state. I won't ask you to appreciate this because I'm not conservative either. But that's what it is, and they're very protective of their small-state way of life. It isn't remarkable that they put fetters on MMJ, it was likely from the start. Denver is a town that issued a death ultimatum to street gangs fifteen years ago, "get out, or we'll kill you." These are sentiments which don't change overnight.That such a state has MMJ is worthy of praise. I don't remember a time in my life when CO was liberal--you have to go to the university towns and remote hippie villages to really see left in a state that has always been proud of being right.Should the Rainbow Festival be in Colorado this year, who knows?--rchandar
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Comment #2 posted by The GCW on January 12, 2010 at 13:36:30 PT

More
US CO: Denver OKs medical marijuana dispensary rulesWebpage: http://www.summitdaily.com/article/20100112/NEWS/100119943/1078&ParentProfile=1055Pubdate: 12 Jan 2009Source: Summit Daily News (CO) 
Author: THE ASSOCIATED PRESSDenver OKs medical marijuana dispensary rulesDENVER — Denver's City Council has passed proposed rules for medical marijuana dispensaries in the city.The rules are set to take effect March 1 but could change depending on what happens in the state Legislature. A voter-approved state law allows marijuana use for medical reasons but doesn't regulate dispensaries.The Denver rules would prohibit dispensaries within 1,000 feet of schools, day cares and other dispensaries. Felons convicted within the last five years would be barred from running shops. Dispensary owners would have to be licensed, pass a criminal background check, pay a $2,000 application fee, and pay $3,000 a year to renew licenses.More than 90 people signed up to comment on the proposals at a City Council meeting Monday. 
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Comment #1 posted by Sam Adams on January 12, 2010 at 08:58:27 PT

calls and emails
I'm not buying it at all - only 3 people testified in favor of the ban (1000 foot rule is a ban folks), dozens against it. yet we're supposed to believe that hordes of people called and emailed! What is the point of having a public hearing? To tell all the people that show up to testify about a bunch of imaginary emails? These city councilors are petty liars and thugs. We already know what the people wanted because we actually VOTED on it! The people voted for DISTRIBUTION of medical marijuana. 
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