COUNCIL GETS JUMP ON LAWS IN CASE MEDICAL POT PASSES

Huachuca City stipulates where, when marijuana could be sold

HUACHUCA CITY - The town council took pre-emptive measures during
Wednesday's regular meeting in the event that Arizona voters pass a
proposal that would legalize the use of marijuana for medicinal purposes.

Ordinance 10-06 was passed unanimously by members of the Huachuca City
Town Council and dictates, among other things, where medical marijuana
dispensaries can be located within the town, when they can operate and
how large they can be.

The ordinance was passed as an emergency, meaning it does not require
a second reading during the next regularly scheduled council meeting
and there is no 30-day period between the final reading and its
enactment. The ordinance will go into effect the moment Proposition
203, the Arizona Medical Marijuana Act, passes. If the proposition
fails, the ordinance will be null and void.

As of Wednesday afternoon, Proposition 203 was 3,342 votes away from
being passed, or 0.20 percent of all votes counted, according to the
unofficial results tallied by the Arizona Secretary of State's Office.
There are still about 22,000 early ballots and just more than 56,000
provisional ballots to be counted in the state. All of the early
ballots, and about 50,000 of the provisional ballots, are from
Maricopa County, while the rest are from Coconino, Yavapai, Yuma and
Gila counties.

State law indicates that any statewide proposition that ends up with a
margin of 200 votes or less is subject to a recount.

Some of the key points of Huachuca City's ordinance are that medical
marijuana dispensaries cannot be located within 1,000 feet of any
school, church or public park, and that they can only operate from 9
a.m. to 5 p.m., cannot be larger than 4,900 square feet and may not
offer drive-through services.

Councilman Ken Taylor, who made the original motion that the council
direct the town clerk and town attorney to draft the ordinance, said
it was in the best interest of the town to tackle the issue sooner
rather than later.

"It's better to be prepared," Taylor said.

Apart from Council Member Laura Wallace and Mayor Byron Robertson,
both of whom were absent, all council members voted in favor of the
ordinance.

Also during the meeting, the council recognized the town employee of
the quarter, Public Works Foreman Jim Halterman.

Halterman was praised by Public Works Director Mike Lockett for his
"outstanding performance and exceptional commitment to teamwork."

It was these skills that made Halterman "instrumental" in ensuring a
smooth transition into Lockett filling the position of public works
director over the summer, he said.

Two items on Wednesday's agenda dealt with the town clerk, Ron
Armstrong.

The second was a request for a vacation day, which was granted, while
the first was to formally recognize and commend Armstrong for his
continued dedication to the town and "unbelievable ethics," said Mayor
Pro Tem Pat Woodruff.

"Where do I start? The guy's great," said Councilman Eric Wilkey.
"We'd sink without him."

Armstrong said he was flattered and a bit embarrassed by the
complements, and that he does his best to "serve the town council and
all its members equally and to give (them) the advice they need to
make good business decisions."

Also, the town council voted to cancel their next regular meeting,
which would have fallen on Thanksgiving, while allowing a special
meeting to be called prior to the next regular meeting of December 9,
if necessary.