Alamosa city residents will not vote on medical marijuana dispensaries this November.
The Alamosa city council last night by consensus decided it would make future decisions about medical marijuana dispensaries within the city limits without sending the issue to the voters.
"By no means do I mean to take anything away from the power of the vote for people, but I do believe this is an issue the people voted on medical marijuana a long time ago and it feels to me like we were elected to make certain tough decisions," Mayor Kathy Rogers said. She said although this could be a tough decision she believed the council could make it.
She added that the councilors have gathered information on this subject and she would not expect citizens to have the time to conduct as in-depth studies as the council had.
Councilor Rusty Johnson said the more he learned about the subject, the more comfortable he felt in making a decision about it.
Councilor Josef Lucero said he believed people should have a voice in this very important issue, but he was concerned about the cost of the election.
City Clerk Judy Egbert said the city would not normally be a part of the November election this year so it would be an un-budgeted expense to participate in it. She said a ballpark figure for the estimated city portion of a coordinated election with the county would be $9,000.
She added that the county clerk had to know by July 23 whether or not the city would be participating in the November election, so the council needed to decide if it wanted to take the medical marijuana dispensary issue to the voters.
Alamosa county commissioners decided to take the issue to the voters. The Alamosa city council has worked on ordinances that would regulate medical marijuana dispensaries in the city, should any applications be submitted for them in the future. Currently the only local dispensary lies in the county.
Councilor Charles Griego agreed that this is a decision the council could make without going to the voters. He said the voters placed the council in office to make these kind of tough decisions and the council should not send everything to the voters just because they are tough decisions.
Councilor Greg Gillaspie added, "I think we are capable of making that decision."
The city currently has a moratorium in place on any medical marijuana dispensary applications. The moratorium lasts through the end of the calendar year.
NewsHawk: Ganjarden: 420 MAGAZINE
Source: Valley Courier
Author: Ruth Heide
Copyright: 2010 Valley Courier
The Alamosa city council last night by consensus decided it would make future decisions about medical marijuana dispensaries within the city limits without sending the issue to the voters.
"By no means do I mean to take anything away from the power of the vote for people, but I do believe this is an issue the people voted on medical marijuana a long time ago and it feels to me like we were elected to make certain tough decisions," Mayor Kathy Rogers said. She said although this could be a tough decision she believed the council could make it.
She added that the councilors have gathered information on this subject and she would not expect citizens to have the time to conduct as in-depth studies as the council had.
Councilor Rusty Johnson said the more he learned about the subject, the more comfortable he felt in making a decision about it.
Councilor Josef Lucero said he believed people should have a voice in this very important issue, but he was concerned about the cost of the election.
City Clerk Judy Egbert said the city would not normally be a part of the November election this year so it would be an un-budgeted expense to participate in it. She said a ballpark figure for the estimated city portion of a coordinated election with the county would be $9,000.
She added that the county clerk had to know by July 23 whether or not the city would be participating in the November election, so the council needed to decide if it wanted to take the medical marijuana dispensary issue to the voters.
Alamosa county commissioners decided to take the issue to the voters. The Alamosa city council has worked on ordinances that would regulate medical marijuana dispensaries in the city, should any applications be submitted for them in the future. Currently the only local dispensary lies in the county.
Councilor Charles Griego agreed that this is a decision the council could make without going to the voters. He said the voters placed the council in office to make these kind of tough decisions and the council should not send everything to the voters just because they are tough decisions.
Councilor Greg Gillaspie added, "I think we are capable of making that decision."
The city currently has a moratorium in place on any medical marijuana dispensary applications. The moratorium lasts through the end of the calendar year.
NewsHawk: Ganjarden: 420 MAGAZINE
Source: Valley Courier
Author: Ruth Heide
Copyright: 2010 Valley Courier
