Jacob Bell
New Member
A new medical marijuana ordinance could take shape in Blue Lake this week while the county continues to sort out the details of its own marijuana growing guidelines.
A town hall meeting on Tuesday will feature the first public comment on Blue Lake's ordinance, which borrows heavily from the existing ones in both Arcata and Eureka, the latter less than a year old. Blue Lake Mayor Sherman Schapiro said that he's received numerous complaints about marijuana grows recently, both for noise and smell, and he hopes the new ordinance will help address such issues.
"There are people with medical marijuana cards, and there are people growing marijuana in Blue Lake," Schapiro said. "We're just trying to fall in line with what other cities are doing."
The ordinance, which was put together by a special subcommittee, reads, in part: "Medical cannabis cultivation shall remain at all times secondary to the residential use of the property." Restrictions on indoor growing include that a grow not exceed 50 square feet or 10 feet in height and use less than 1,200 watts of power.
Growers are also prohibited from using compressed gas, such as butane, during cultivation, and would be required to fill out an application with the city and complete a building review in order for a grow to exceed the limitations.
Along with the guidelines for indoor grows, Schapiro said, a key component of the ordinance is the distinction for a co-op or collective grow, which will not be allowed in residential neighborhoods. Instead, any such operation will be limited to zones deemed for industrial use and may not exceed 1,500 square feet.
Arcata attorney and longtime medical marijuana advocate Greg Allen, meanwhile, said he supported the idea of local cities adopting similar ordinances.
"It seems like they (the Arcata and Eureka ordinances) balance the rights of a patient to have his medicine as well as the rights of his neighbors," said Allen, who worked on the two ordinances and has been asked by the Humboldt County Planning Commission to participate in drafting a county-wide ordinance. "The fact that we're moving toward uniformity is probably a good thing."
While Allen continues to work on getting an ordinance to the board of supervisors, he said there are a couple things he would like to see tweaked in the city ordinances, including the current wattage restrictions.
"If they're wired OK, I wouldn't mind seeing room for more power," Allen said, adding that the goal of any local ordinance should be to provide a boost to the local economy. "We want a law that's going to support this industry, not kill it."
News Hawk- GuitarMan313 420 MAGAZINE
Source: times-standard.com
Author: Matt Drange
Contact: Contact Us - Times-Standard Online
Copyright: Copyright © 2011 - Times-Standard
Website: Making room for pot: Blue Lake City Council to discuss medical marijuana ordinance - Times-Standard Online
A town hall meeting on Tuesday will feature the first public comment on Blue Lake's ordinance, which borrows heavily from the existing ones in both Arcata and Eureka, the latter less than a year old. Blue Lake Mayor Sherman Schapiro said that he's received numerous complaints about marijuana grows recently, both for noise and smell, and he hopes the new ordinance will help address such issues.
"There are people with medical marijuana cards, and there are people growing marijuana in Blue Lake," Schapiro said. "We're just trying to fall in line with what other cities are doing."
The ordinance, which was put together by a special subcommittee, reads, in part: "Medical cannabis cultivation shall remain at all times secondary to the residential use of the property." Restrictions on indoor growing include that a grow not exceed 50 square feet or 10 feet in height and use less than 1,200 watts of power.
Growers are also prohibited from using compressed gas, such as butane, during cultivation, and would be required to fill out an application with the city and complete a building review in order for a grow to exceed the limitations.
Along with the guidelines for indoor grows, Schapiro said, a key component of the ordinance is the distinction for a co-op or collective grow, which will not be allowed in residential neighborhoods. Instead, any such operation will be limited to zones deemed for industrial use and may not exceed 1,500 square feet.
Arcata attorney and longtime medical marijuana advocate Greg Allen, meanwhile, said he supported the idea of local cities adopting similar ordinances.
"It seems like they (the Arcata and Eureka ordinances) balance the rights of a patient to have his medicine as well as the rights of his neighbors," said Allen, who worked on the two ordinances and has been asked by the Humboldt County Planning Commission to participate in drafting a county-wide ordinance. "The fact that we're moving toward uniformity is probably a good thing."
While Allen continues to work on getting an ordinance to the board of supervisors, he said there are a couple things he would like to see tweaked in the city ordinances, including the current wattage restrictions.
"If they're wired OK, I wouldn't mind seeing room for more power," Allen said, adding that the goal of any local ordinance should be to provide a boost to the local economy. "We want a law that's going to support this industry, not kill it."
News Hawk- GuitarMan313 420 MAGAZINE
Source: times-standard.com
Author: Matt Drange
Contact: Contact Us - Times-Standard Online
Copyright: Copyright © 2011 - Times-Standard
Website: Making room for pot: Blue Lake City Council to discuss medical marijuana ordinance - Times-Standard Online
