The Bayfield Town Board has banned medical marijuana dispensaries from operating within town limits, but trustees left the door open for Durango dispensaries to make deliveries.
No one from the public spoke at Tuesday's meeting, during which the ordinance passed 5-1, with Trustee Ed Morlan casting the dissenting vote. Morlan said his absence at the previous meeting and not hearing the arguments for and against dispensaries was one of his primary reasons for voting against the ordinance.
Morlan also expressed reservations against banning anything that doesn't pose an imminent threat to one's life or liberty.
"Banning people from killing each other, I'm all for that," Morlan said Wednesday. "But banning things for moral reasons is a slippery slope."
The ordinance, drafted by Town Attorney Dirk Nelson, prohibits dispensaries, growing operations, and the manufacture of marijuana infused products within town limits. Primary caregivers operating in accordance with state law will not be affected.
Deliveries of medical marijuana will be allowed, but businesses will have to obtain a Bayfield business license and agree to pay the town's sales tax of 2 percent.
The ordinance, which went into effect Wednesday, takes advantage of the town's right to ban dispensaries and related facilities as defined in HB-1284, passed last week by the state Legislature. The bill still needs Gov. Ritter's signature before it becomes law.
Before HB-1284's passage, the right of a municipality to ban dispensaries was not clearly defined. The new law seeks to eliminate much of the gray area that exists in medical marijuana regulation.
The bill now requires dispensaries to be licensed by a new medical marijuana licensing authority.
News Hawk: Warbux 420 MAGAZINE
Source: The Durango Herald
Author: Patrick Young
Contact: pyoung@durangoherald.com.
Copyright: 2010 The Durango Herald
Website: Durango Herald News, Bayfield snuffs medical marijuana
No one from the public spoke at Tuesday's meeting, during which the ordinance passed 5-1, with Trustee Ed Morlan casting the dissenting vote. Morlan said his absence at the previous meeting and not hearing the arguments for and against dispensaries was one of his primary reasons for voting against the ordinance.
Morlan also expressed reservations against banning anything that doesn't pose an imminent threat to one's life or liberty.
"Banning people from killing each other, I'm all for that," Morlan said Wednesday. "But banning things for moral reasons is a slippery slope."
The ordinance, drafted by Town Attorney Dirk Nelson, prohibits dispensaries, growing operations, and the manufacture of marijuana infused products within town limits. Primary caregivers operating in accordance with state law will not be affected.
Deliveries of medical marijuana will be allowed, but businesses will have to obtain a Bayfield business license and agree to pay the town's sales tax of 2 percent.
The ordinance, which went into effect Wednesday, takes advantage of the town's right to ban dispensaries and related facilities as defined in HB-1284, passed last week by the state Legislature. The bill still needs Gov. Ritter's signature before it becomes law.
Before HB-1284's passage, the right of a municipality to ban dispensaries was not clearly defined. The new law seeks to eliminate much of the gray area that exists in medical marijuana regulation.
The bill now requires dispensaries to be licensed by a new medical marijuana licensing authority.
News Hawk: Warbux 420 MAGAZINE
Source: The Durango Herald
Author: Patrick Young
Contact: pyoung@durangoherald.com.
Copyright: 2010 The Durango Herald
Website: Durango Herald News, Bayfield snuffs medical marijuana
