Jacob Bell
New Member
Yelm's first medical marijuana facility is apparently set to open.
With new legislation to define marijuana laws still pending in the Legislature, Yelm business owner Mark Ryan said he is making the move from selling tobacco to cannabis.
Ryan, who owns Yelm Smoke Plus, is ridding his store of tobacco products and plans to open a farmer's market-style shop for medical marijuana patients who want to sell their extra crops.
Current state legislation allows medical marijuana patients to produce and be in possession of a 60-day supply of marijuana, which is defined as 15 plants.
An additional medical marijuana shop in Yelm is also in the planning stages. A business application for The Green Baron Medical Marijuana Dispensary is pending with the City of Yelm.
"This is more than a business position, it's a spiritual decision," Ryan said.
"Tobacco is death, and I'm done with it."
The smoke shop owner has gone through the permitting process and is ready to be operational.
He said he could be up and running within a week.
Currently he is looking for "farmers" interested in being a part of the shop.
He only has room for two "farmers" at a time.
If enough people come forward, he is looking into starting a rotation.
Once the shop goes from tobacco to cannabis, no one without a valid medical marijuana prescription will be permitted to enter the shop.
Ryan said his business will be very cut-and-dry; he will only deal with valid patients and he will not allow additional products such as edibles or lotions.
Ryan's belief, he said, is that the production of such items means the person is growing more than they're legally allowed.
He also said, because the industry isn't really regulated at this point, that any edibles would not be made in a commercial kitchen or have product liability.
Ryan said his shop is not a dispensary because he is not dispensing the product.
"I have no intention of being a dispensary until it's legal," Ryan said.
"I'm renting space, not selling the product."
The idea of medical marijuana shops cropping up in town is raising some eyebrows.
"Law enforcement has never been supportive of the medical marijuana law," said Yelm Police Chief Todd Stancil.
"I don't think there's any place for that," Stancil said. "They shouldn't be able to go to their neighborhood shop to get it."
If marijuana is being prescribed for a medical reason, Stancil said patients should be required to go to a medical facility to obtain it.
Stancil said he has several concerns including that it may breed other crimes.
"The one home invasion we've had (recently) was because of a patient growing his own," Stancil said.
One of his concerns is how broad the current legislation is.
"It seems like they've legalized it half way," Stancil said. "It'd be easier for us if they banned it all the way or legalized it."
Second District state Sen. Randi Becker, R-Eatonville, voted against current proposed medical marijuana legislation.
Senate Bill 5073 passed in the Senate on March 2 with 29 in favor, 20 opposed.
"I wanted to support this, but I couldn't," Becker said. "It's just so broad."
Becker said she isn't against the use of medical marijuana because she's seen first-hand how it can be beneficial.
She explained that she had a family member undergoing cancer treatment who was prescribed cannibis to help with nausea during chemotherapy.
"I'd like people to have it if it helps them," Becker said. "Just because of my brother. I know how it helped him."
The issue of the current legislation is that it got too broad, she said.
"It just got to be too big," Becker said. "I had real concerns."
The legislation didn't protect law enforcement officers if they seized property and later learned the person was a valid patient.
Becker said she also has concerns about additional products and manufacturing being addressed in the bill.
When did the government get from allowing someone to smoke a little bit to making lotions, she asked rhetorically.
"It's just not well done," Becker said. "If I were to ever support it, it would have to be well crafted."
News Hawk- GuitarMan313 420 MAGAZINE
Source: yelmonline.com
Author: Megan Hansen
Contact: Contact Us
Copyright: Yelm Online
Website: Medical Marijuana Coming to Yelm
With new legislation to define marijuana laws still pending in the Legislature, Yelm business owner Mark Ryan said he is making the move from selling tobacco to cannabis.
Ryan, who owns Yelm Smoke Plus, is ridding his store of tobacco products and plans to open a farmer's market-style shop for medical marijuana patients who want to sell their extra crops.
Current state legislation allows medical marijuana patients to produce and be in possession of a 60-day supply of marijuana, which is defined as 15 plants.
An additional medical marijuana shop in Yelm is also in the planning stages. A business application for The Green Baron Medical Marijuana Dispensary is pending with the City of Yelm.
"This is more than a business position, it's a spiritual decision," Ryan said.
"Tobacco is death, and I'm done with it."
The smoke shop owner has gone through the permitting process and is ready to be operational.
He said he could be up and running within a week.
Currently he is looking for "farmers" interested in being a part of the shop.
He only has room for two "farmers" at a time.
If enough people come forward, he is looking into starting a rotation.
Once the shop goes from tobacco to cannabis, no one without a valid medical marijuana prescription will be permitted to enter the shop.
Ryan said his business will be very cut-and-dry; he will only deal with valid patients and he will not allow additional products such as edibles or lotions.
Ryan's belief, he said, is that the production of such items means the person is growing more than they're legally allowed.
He also said, because the industry isn't really regulated at this point, that any edibles would not be made in a commercial kitchen or have product liability.
Ryan said his shop is not a dispensary because he is not dispensing the product.
"I have no intention of being a dispensary until it's legal," Ryan said.
"I'm renting space, not selling the product."
The idea of medical marijuana shops cropping up in town is raising some eyebrows.
"Law enforcement has never been supportive of the medical marijuana law," said Yelm Police Chief Todd Stancil.
"I don't think there's any place for that," Stancil said. "They shouldn't be able to go to their neighborhood shop to get it."
If marijuana is being prescribed for a medical reason, Stancil said patients should be required to go to a medical facility to obtain it.
Stancil said he has several concerns including that it may breed other crimes.
"The one home invasion we've had (recently) was because of a patient growing his own," Stancil said.
One of his concerns is how broad the current legislation is.
"It seems like they've legalized it half way," Stancil said. "It'd be easier for us if they banned it all the way or legalized it."
Second District state Sen. Randi Becker, R-Eatonville, voted against current proposed medical marijuana legislation.
Senate Bill 5073 passed in the Senate on March 2 with 29 in favor, 20 opposed.
"I wanted to support this, but I couldn't," Becker said. "It's just so broad."
Becker said she isn't against the use of medical marijuana because she's seen first-hand how it can be beneficial.
She explained that she had a family member undergoing cancer treatment who was prescribed cannibis to help with nausea during chemotherapy.
"I'd like people to have it if it helps them," Becker said. "Just because of my brother. I know how it helped him."
The issue of the current legislation is that it got too broad, she said.
"It just got to be too big," Becker said. "I had real concerns."
The legislation didn't protect law enforcement officers if they seized property and later learned the person was a valid patient.
Becker said she also has concerns about additional products and manufacturing being addressed in the bill.
When did the government get from allowing someone to smoke a little bit to making lotions, she asked rhetorically.
"It's just not well done," Becker said. "If I were to ever support it, it would have to be well crafted."
News Hawk- GuitarMan313 420 MAGAZINE
Source: yelmonline.com
Author: Megan Hansen
Contact: Contact Us
Copyright: Yelm Online
Website: Medical Marijuana Coming to Yelm
