Jacob Redmond
Well-Known Member
The debate over Detroit's plentiful marijuana shops continues to rage, as the City Council considers a new zoning proposal that medical marijuana advocates fear would reduce patients' access to treatment.
The proposed zoning restrictions – recently revised by the City Planning Commission – would prohibit the marijuana shops from operating within 1,000 radial feet of a variety of places, including schools, parks, churches, child care centers, liquor stores and other medical marijuana providers.
A previous version of the proposed ordinance required medical marijuana providers to be at least 2,000 feet from other marijuana shops, strip clubs, party stores and other businesses known under city law as "controlled uses." But the planning commission, recognizing the medical nature of the marijuana shops, reduced those restrictions to 1,000 feet at a Nov. 5 meeting.
Many residents say the strict regulations are needed because new marijuana shops, some with gaudy neon signs and armed security guards, continue to open at a breakneck pace, creating an unsafe atmosphere that is changing the character of their neighborhoods.
State Rep. Leslie Love, who represents northwest Detroit, joined residents last week at a City Council committee meeting where they decried the abundance of marijuana shops. "You can get marijuana, but you can't get a gallon of milk," Love said.
But medical marijuana advocates say the proposed restrictions are so tight that it would be difficult to find a location that meets the proposed zoning requirements.
Khari Wheeler, who owns the Rosedale Park Provisioning Center, said he is not sure whether his shop would be compliant with the proposed restrictions. Wheeler said he's OK with the proposed restriction on operating near schools. But overall, the zoning ordinance is excessive and appears to push the shops toward the city's industrial land in southwest Detroit. (Indeed, the proposal relaxes restrictions on industrially zoned land.)
"I don't think they're taking into account the vast number of patients that need their medicine," Wheeler said. "I wouldn't want my grandmother to go to Zug Island to get her medicine."
City Council staffers are working on a map showing available parcels of property that meet the proposed zoning requirements. The map is expected to play a significant role in the forthcoming debate, because it would shed light on how the marijuana shops could be distributed throughout the city.
The council's planning and economic development committee will discuss the regulations at its 10 a.m. meeting Thursday at the Coleman A. Young Municipal Center. The map could be ready for review by then. It is unknown whether the council will vote on the plan before the end of the year. The council is required to hold another public hearing, the date of which has not been set, before voting.
Should the council ultimately pass the zoning ordinance, existing shops would not be grandfathered into compliance. They could be forced to shut down if afoul of new rules.
A report published in October estimated about 150 marijuana shops in Detroit.
Matthew Abel of the Cannabis Counsel law firm in Detroit said there are about 24,000 card-carrying medical marijuana patients in Wayne County. About 12,000 cards were issued in the county last year. The cards are good for two years, Abel said, so he assumed there are double the patients. The demand for medical marijuana in Detroit is even greater, because many of the surrounding municipalities in other counties do not tolerate the marijuana shops.
"Do we want that business to go elsewhere or do we want to be a commercial center for this?" Abel said. "We ought to use this to stimulate economic activity and growth."
Despite the prospect of new rules that could shut down operations, new medical marijuana shops continue to pop up in Detroit.
A shop called Miles Green Acres with a bright green awning opened its doors recently next to Dutch Girl Donuts at Woodward Avenue and West 7 Mile Road.
Melanie Faison, a 71-year-old Detroit resident who owns Green Acres, said she understands why the city would want to keep the shops away from children. Faison said she realizes that Palmer Park Golf Course is across the street from Green Acres, potentially triggering the 1,000-foot restriction on proximity to parks. Faison said she shouldn't be forced to close because a golf course is nearby.
"I would think it's unfair – why? Because it's not children" at the golf course, Faison said.
The doughnut shop next to Green Acres doesn't seem to mind its new, marijuana-providing neighbor. Customers filed in and out of Dutch Girl on Friday morning, buying cookies and doughnuts.
Carmen Corbett, who works at Dutch Girl, said Green Acres has created no new problems and customers have not complained.
"We've been busy forever whether they were here or not," Corbett said.
News Moderator: Jacob Redmond 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: Detroit Council Takes Up Latest Medical Marijuana Rules
Author: Joe Guillen
Contact: Contact Page
Photo Credit: Sweet Relief
Website: Detroit Free Press
The proposed zoning restrictions – recently revised by the City Planning Commission – would prohibit the marijuana shops from operating within 1,000 radial feet of a variety of places, including schools, parks, churches, child care centers, liquor stores and other medical marijuana providers.
A previous version of the proposed ordinance required medical marijuana providers to be at least 2,000 feet from other marijuana shops, strip clubs, party stores and other businesses known under city law as "controlled uses." But the planning commission, recognizing the medical nature of the marijuana shops, reduced those restrictions to 1,000 feet at a Nov. 5 meeting.
Many residents say the strict regulations are needed because new marijuana shops, some with gaudy neon signs and armed security guards, continue to open at a breakneck pace, creating an unsafe atmosphere that is changing the character of their neighborhoods.
State Rep. Leslie Love, who represents northwest Detroit, joined residents last week at a City Council committee meeting where they decried the abundance of marijuana shops. "You can get marijuana, but you can't get a gallon of milk," Love said.
But medical marijuana advocates say the proposed restrictions are so tight that it would be difficult to find a location that meets the proposed zoning requirements.
Khari Wheeler, who owns the Rosedale Park Provisioning Center, said he is not sure whether his shop would be compliant with the proposed restrictions. Wheeler said he's OK with the proposed restriction on operating near schools. But overall, the zoning ordinance is excessive and appears to push the shops toward the city's industrial land in southwest Detroit. (Indeed, the proposal relaxes restrictions on industrially zoned land.)
"I don't think they're taking into account the vast number of patients that need their medicine," Wheeler said. "I wouldn't want my grandmother to go to Zug Island to get her medicine."
City Council staffers are working on a map showing available parcels of property that meet the proposed zoning requirements. The map is expected to play a significant role in the forthcoming debate, because it would shed light on how the marijuana shops could be distributed throughout the city.
The council's planning and economic development committee will discuss the regulations at its 10 a.m. meeting Thursday at the Coleman A. Young Municipal Center. The map could be ready for review by then. It is unknown whether the council will vote on the plan before the end of the year. The council is required to hold another public hearing, the date of which has not been set, before voting.
Should the council ultimately pass the zoning ordinance, existing shops would not be grandfathered into compliance. They could be forced to shut down if afoul of new rules.
A report published in October estimated about 150 marijuana shops in Detroit.
Matthew Abel of the Cannabis Counsel law firm in Detroit said there are about 24,000 card-carrying medical marijuana patients in Wayne County. About 12,000 cards were issued in the county last year. The cards are good for two years, Abel said, so he assumed there are double the patients. The demand for medical marijuana in Detroit is even greater, because many of the surrounding municipalities in other counties do not tolerate the marijuana shops.
"Do we want that business to go elsewhere or do we want to be a commercial center for this?" Abel said. "We ought to use this to stimulate economic activity and growth."
Despite the prospect of new rules that could shut down operations, new medical marijuana shops continue to pop up in Detroit.
A shop called Miles Green Acres with a bright green awning opened its doors recently next to Dutch Girl Donuts at Woodward Avenue and West 7 Mile Road.
Melanie Faison, a 71-year-old Detroit resident who owns Green Acres, said she understands why the city would want to keep the shops away from children. Faison said she realizes that Palmer Park Golf Course is across the street from Green Acres, potentially triggering the 1,000-foot restriction on proximity to parks. Faison said she shouldn't be forced to close because a golf course is nearby.
"I would think it's unfair – why? Because it's not children" at the golf course, Faison said.
The doughnut shop next to Green Acres doesn't seem to mind its new, marijuana-providing neighbor. Customers filed in and out of Dutch Girl on Friday morning, buying cookies and doughnuts.
Carmen Corbett, who works at Dutch Girl, said Green Acres has created no new problems and customers have not complained.
"We've been busy forever whether they were here or not," Corbett said.
News Moderator: Jacob Redmond 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: Detroit Council Takes Up Latest Medical Marijuana Rules
Author: Joe Guillen
Contact: Contact Page
Photo Credit: Sweet Relief
Website: Detroit Free Press
