COUNCIL REVIEWS MARIJUANA DISPENSARY RULES

When Fort Collins City Councilman Wade Troxell opened up the Denver
Post on Tuesday morning, he noticed a full page of advertisements for
medical marijuana dispensaries in the Denver metro area.

"Ads that said, 'Come and get it,'" Troxell said during Tuesday
night's City Council meeting.

He wondered if the Denver Post, distributing its newspaper within
Fort Collins city limits, might be violating the city's new medical
marijuana ordinances because its advertisements appeared to be
misleading and promoting marijuana available in the Denver area.

You can't just come and get it and you can't promote breaking the
law, he said. If it doesn't exist already, he said, there may be a
"truth in advertising" provision soon added to city code related to
medical marijuana dispensaries.

"Is that enforceable in the city of Fort Collins?" Troxell asked City
Attorney Steve Roy.

"I'll have to get back to you on that," Roy said.

That exchange was the culmination of more than two hours of council
discussion and impassioned posturing, invective and lawsuit threats
from medical marijuana advocates Tuesday night about three proposed
medical marijuana ordinances that would expand regulations the
council adopted last month.

The proposed ordinances would amend city code to allow grow
operations to exist outside the city's industrial zone, permit some
grow operations to be combined with dispensaries and clarify which
existing businesses will be allowed to obtain a medical marijuana
business license.

With Troxell the lone dissenter on the first two of the three
ordinances, the council gave its provisional approval to the
measures, which must withstand another council vote before they are adopted.

The third ordinance, which deals with existing businesses, passed unanimously.

The vote followed a procession of medical marijuana advocates and
dispensary owners threatening legal action if the council doesn't
allow dispensary owners to grow and sell marijuana as they choose
without the interference from the city.

"I will fight until you guys are broke," said dispensary owner
Richard Present, suggesting that the ordinances violate Amendment 20,
which legalized medical marijuana in Colorado in 2000.

He told council members they'll "go through hell" because of all the
legal challenges they'll face.

Others spared council members the threats.

Dispensary owner Michael Mockler said he's unhappy with the city's
limit on the amount of marijuana a dispensary can purchase at a time.

"We're limited to 2 ounces per vendor," he said. "If I have a
gentleman come in, and he has 16 ounces of quality medicine that I
could buy for a really good discounted price, I can't buy at that
lower price and pass that price onto my patients. That puts me in a
really bad position in how to work my business."

Bulk buying, he said, "is a no-brainer."

Many dispensary owners said they are concerned about whether they're
current operations will be "grandfathered" into the new ordinances if
they're adopted, which would allow them to obtain a business permit
if they exist outside the zones allowing dispensaries.

Mayor Dough Hutchinson said the council will consider
"grandfathering" after the ordinances are passed.

In other business Tuesday, the council approved an ordinance slightly
relaxing the city's "three unrelated" home occupancy code. The
ordinance allows missionaries or exchange students to stay with host
families without running afoul of city code.

The council also provisionally approved an ordinance accepting a $15
million federal grant to fund the Smart Grid Project, which would
install electronic electric meters on 21,000 homes and businesses
across the city. A final vote will come at the next council meeting.