SAGINAW COUNCIL COULD DEFINE MARIJUANA ZONES

Saginaw City Hall may ask residents for input on where medical
marijuana producers may grow and sell their product.

Monday, the City Council could introduce an ordinance imposing a
citywide moratorium halting the growth and distribution of marijuana
for medical use until June 30, giving leaders time to modify zoning
to include the drug.

"Any time you start to work out a substantial change in a zoning
ordinance, there sometimes is a land rush to start these things"
before the laws go into effect, City Attorney Thomas H. Fancher said.
"The idea here is to blow the whistle and keep the status quo until
the ordinance is written, so everyone has the same start."

Michigan voters passed Proposal 1 in November 2008, making it legal
to grow, sell and use marijuana for medical purposes.

"This could lead to a lot of confusion as to where these activities
could take place, and right now, we don't have anything in our zoning
code to say where these things go," Fancher said. "Now that it's
legal, we need to address it."

The measure is among a number of high-profile items the council will
tackle at 6:30 p.m. at City Hall, 1315 S. Washington.

Also on the agenda: A $25,000 federal lawsuit settlement involving
the uncle of a murdered Saginaw resident; a brownfield redevelopment
plan that could pave the way for a 500-job, $177 million solar
manufacturing plant on the city's northeast side; and a decision
whether to impose stronger penalties for parents with troublemaker children.

New Territory

The council's verdict on the marijuana moratorium won't equate to a
final vote. The group would need a second tally to seal the deal,
likely to come at a Dec. 21, meeting.

Fancher said the six-month pause on marijuana sales and growth would
give city leaders enough time to re-write zoning.

"Maybe we'll want it in a (business) zone, but not a residential
zone," the attorney said. "Maybe we want the growing fields not to be
next to a school. These are things we want to look at."

Fancher said officials still are determining how to proceed, but it
could include a citizen's panel that would provide ideas.

"We're thinking of drafting citizens to add their expertise," he
said. "We'll be drawing from a lot of sources and a lot of ordinances
from around the state to see what works and what we want here."

Officials could invite medical marijuana users to join the panel, Fancher said.

"I would hope we start this pretty promptly," he said.