Flathead County commissioners decided against pursuing changes in county zoning regulations with regard to medical marijuana, for now, saying any action taken at this point may be rendered obsolete if state law changes at the next Legislature.
The decision came after county Planning and Zoning Director Jeff Harris presented the commission at an April 15 meeting with his interpretation of how growing and dispensing medical marijuana fits into current zoning regulations.
Growing medical marijuana is considered an agricultural use, Harris said, and dispensaries are similar to pharmacies, which are allowed in several zoning designations. "Home Occupation" designation is also possible, he added.
There has been a need for such interpretation, Harris said, because his office has received several inquiries about how such practices align with zoned areas of the county.
Harris said the cities in the Flathead Valley could end up displacing most medical marijuana activities into the unincorporated county and noted that the commission may want to consider how to deal with it.
Currently, Whitefish and Kalispell have moratoriums on dispensaries within city limits and Kalispell may ban them outright because the state law legalizing the practice conflicts with federal law.
Columbia Falls does not have a moratorium in place and treats medical marijuana dispensaries like any other business endeavor.
With the moratoriums in place, any new medical marijuana shop would have to set up in either the county or Columbia Falls, Harris said. He asked the commission if they wanted to consider putting more sideboards on the zoning regulations by adding performance standards for dispensaries, such as restricting them to a certain distances from schools, parks or churches.
The commissioners, however, questioned whether such an amendment would be in vain. State law could change during the 2011 Legislature, they said, creating more specific rules for dispensaries. A 2004 voter initiative legalized medical marijuana Montana.
"Like it or not, the public voted it in," Commissioner Jim Dupont said. "We could make all kinds of (regulations), but what good is it going to do? It's not going to stop it, it's not going to prevent it."
Commissioner Dale Lauman bemoaned the lack of legislative oversight on medical marijuana because it left too many unanswered questions for city and county governments to deal with.
Since growing medical marijuana is legal, Commissioner Joe Brenneman said it would be useless to try to put in dispensary location standards for Flathead County because zoning amendments take months to develop and may be rendered moot after lawmakers meet in January.
"The fact is that a year from now there probably will be change," Brenneman said.
The commission told Harris that the existing zoning definitions would be sufficient to handle dispensary inquiries for the time being.
Harris said he interprets growing and cultivating medical marijuana as similar to agricultural uses listed in the zoning regulations. Dispensing medical marijuana is sufficiently similar to the prescription drugs dispensed by drug stores or pharmacies, Harris said, which fits into at least three business zone designations as well as others.
But since most grow operations are contained within a greenhouse or a home and do not require full fields, Harris said licensed home growth would be permitted in almost all zones under "Home Occupation" use.
Home occupation businesses require a notarized certification that they meet seven performance standards, which includes limits on outdoor storage, nuisance regulations on noise, dust, smoke and odor, vehicle traffic, hazardous byproducts and increased utility use.
Unzoned areas, which make up about two-thirds of the county, are fair game for any use, Harris noted.
The commissioners said they needed to have more in-depth discussions on the matter and would need further consideration of all options if there were to be zoning changes in the future.
NewsHawk: Ganjarden: 420 MAGAZINE ® - Medical Marijuana Publication & Social Networking
Source: Flathead Beacon
Author: Molly Priddy
Contact: Flathead Beacon
Copyright: 2010 Flathead Beacon
Website: County to Use Current Zoning Rules for Medical Marijuana
The decision came after county Planning and Zoning Director Jeff Harris presented the commission at an April 15 meeting with his interpretation of how growing and dispensing medical marijuana fits into current zoning regulations.
Growing medical marijuana is considered an agricultural use, Harris said, and dispensaries are similar to pharmacies, which are allowed in several zoning designations. "Home Occupation" designation is also possible, he added.
There has been a need for such interpretation, Harris said, because his office has received several inquiries about how such practices align with zoned areas of the county.
Harris said the cities in the Flathead Valley could end up displacing most medical marijuana activities into the unincorporated county and noted that the commission may want to consider how to deal with it.
Currently, Whitefish and Kalispell have moratoriums on dispensaries within city limits and Kalispell may ban them outright because the state law legalizing the practice conflicts with federal law.
Columbia Falls does not have a moratorium in place and treats medical marijuana dispensaries like any other business endeavor.
With the moratoriums in place, any new medical marijuana shop would have to set up in either the county or Columbia Falls, Harris said. He asked the commission if they wanted to consider putting more sideboards on the zoning regulations by adding performance standards for dispensaries, such as restricting them to a certain distances from schools, parks or churches.
The commissioners, however, questioned whether such an amendment would be in vain. State law could change during the 2011 Legislature, they said, creating more specific rules for dispensaries. A 2004 voter initiative legalized medical marijuana Montana.
"Like it or not, the public voted it in," Commissioner Jim Dupont said. "We could make all kinds of (regulations), but what good is it going to do? It's not going to stop it, it's not going to prevent it."
Commissioner Dale Lauman bemoaned the lack of legislative oversight on medical marijuana because it left too many unanswered questions for city and county governments to deal with.
Since growing medical marijuana is legal, Commissioner Joe Brenneman said it would be useless to try to put in dispensary location standards for Flathead County because zoning amendments take months to develop and may be rendered moot after lawmakers meet in January.
"The fact is that a year from now there probably will be change," Brenneman said.
The commission told Harris that the existing zoning definitions would be sufficient to handle dispensary inquiries for the time being.
Harris said he interprets growing and cultivating medical marijuana as similar to agricultural uses listed in the zoning regulations. Dispensing medical marijuana is sufficiently similar to the prescription drugs dispensed by drug stores or pharmacies, Harris said, which fits into at least three business zone designations as well as others.
But since most grow operations are contained within a greenhouse or a home and do not require full fields, Harris said licensed home growth would be permitted in almost all zones under "Home Occupation" use.
Home occupation businesses require a notarized certification that they meet seven performance standards, which includes limits on outdoor storage, nuisance regulations on noise, dust, smoke and odor, vehicle traffic, hazardous byproducts and increased utility use.
Unzoned areas, which make up about two-thirds of the county, are fair game for any use, Harris noted.
The commissioners said they needed to have more in-depth discussions on the matter and would need further consideration of all options if there were to be zoning changes in the future.
NewsHawk: Ganjarden: 420 MAGAZINE ® - Medical Marijuana Publication & Social Networking
Source: Flathead Beacon
Author: Molly Priddy
Contact: Flathead Beacon
Copyright: 2010 Flathead Beacon
Website: County to Use Current Zoning Rules for Medical Marijuana
