LARIMER COMMISSIONERS TO CONSIDER BAN ON MEDICAL POT BUSINESSES

The scale of public opinion could determine the future of medical
marijuana businesses in unincorporated portions of Larimer County.

The county commissioners will conduct a hearing today to take public
comment on whether the county should regulate marijuana businesses or
ban them all together. Another option is to let voters decide the
matter by placing a measure on the November ballot.

One way or the other, the board is likely to make a decision,
Commissioner Tom Donnelly said. The deadline for setting a ballot
issue is Sept. 3.

Donnelly said he plans to go into the hearing with an open mind and to
listen to all comments.

"I do have some concerns about whether the county can provide the
level of service to have these types of businesses; it can be a pretty
intensive use," he said. "We're going to weigh all of the options and
decide what to do."

Marijuana businesses might be more appropriate for urban areas, he
said. The sheriff's office does not have enough deputies to provide
protection to businesses and their customers in rural areas.

And the county's building and health department have limited resources
for inspecting businesses for compliance with health and safety
standards, he said.

Commissioner Steve John-son said his thinking on medical marijuana has
"evolved"

during the time the county and state have been dealing with the
issue.

The large dispensaries that cropped up across the state in the past
year were not what voters envisioned when they approved the use of
marijuana for medicinal reasons in 2000, he said.

Although he has not made up his mind, Johnson said, he is leaning
toward a ban on businesses and not taking the matter to voters.

The needs of patients would be met through dispensaries in Fort
Collins, which appears to be more willing to allow them than other
regional communities, Johnson said.

The county also has to be concerned about the potential for violent
crime in connection with marijuana businesses, including home
invasions, he said.

"I don't think we have the resources to provide the level of community
policing that would be needed in many locations," he said. "We owe it
to people to keep our community safe, and we may not be able to do
that."

Banning marijuana businesses from unincorporated parts of the county
could put more pressure on Fort Collins, said Travis Cutbirth, a
medical marijuana advocate and part owner of Medicinal Gardens of Colorado.

Fort Collins has crafted land-use rules for marijuana businesses,
including minimal distancing from a variety of places, including
schools, places of worship and residential neighborhoods. Grow
operations are limited to commercial and industrial zones.

The city also is developing a process for licensing businesses as
called for in a new state law. The city is waiting to see how state
rules for licensing marijuana businesses play out before deciding how
to "grandfather" in existing businesses.

A county ban could make Fort Collins the "weed capital" of Northern
Colorado, Cutbirth said. That might spur city officials to impose even
tighter regulations on marijuana businesses, he said.

Before making a decision, the commissioners should research the issue
much like Fort Collins officials did, Cutbirth said. In crafting its
regulations, the city conducted outreach and got the perspectives of
patients, business owners and educators, he said.

"I don't think they have heard enough voices," he said. "To look at
banning something that the state has sanctioned without establishing a
committee to look at it or doing due diligence seems
reactionary."

County concern about the resources to regulate businesses is a "straw
man," Cutbirth said.

"The state has certainly found a way to get the resources it needs
through all these expensive fees they are charging," he said. "The
county could come up with fees, too, or just let the state handle the
licensing."

Any decision made by the commissioners would apply to areas of the
county outside of municipal boundaries and would not affect how local
cities and towns regulate marijuana businesses.

Placing a measure on the ballot that would be considered by all county
voters, including residents of cities, may be confusing to voters,
Commissioner Lew Gaiter said.

Caregivers with a few patients would be able to operate as permitted
by state law even if the county bans dispensaries, he said.

"With all that I've learned about this, I do think there have been
some abuses of the law," he said. "But there are legitimate uses as
well. We want to protect that and uphold the Constitution."

No medical marijuana businesses - dispensaries, grow operations or
bakeries that infuse marijuana into edible products - have been
approved through the county's land-use process. About 12 operations
submitted applications for review before the county imposed a
moratorium on new businesses in June.

Two applications have been turned down by the commissioners over
compatibility concerns. But last week, two other applications were
reviewed by the county planning commission, which recommended the
commissioners approve the proposals.

The proposed businesses, both of which would be just outside Fort
Collins city boundaries, met the county's criteria for operating, said
Michael Whitley of the county planning department.

The commissioners would have to decide how to handle businesses that
are through the approval process if they or voters choose to ban
marijuana businesses, he said.

If a ban is imposed, Johnson said, the county should refund any fees
the businesses have paid to the county as part of the review process.
The county should take an "all or nothing" approach to marijuana
businesses, he said.

"We shouldn't be in the position of letting some in and then banning
everybody else - that would not be fair," he said. "I don't see any
perfectly fair answers to these questions."