POT SHOP DENIED

Zoning officials denied on Thursday a medical marijuana caregiver's
request to operate from a residential area on Montana Street.

The Butte-Silver Bow Zoning Board of Adjustment voted 5-0 not to issue
a conditional use permit for applicant Tawnya LaFond to run the
facility at 672 S. Montana St.

"I'm disappointed," LaFond said after the meeting. "They had their
mind made up going in."

LaFond's attorney, Chris Lindsey of Missoula, told the board that his
client sought a permit in the residential area because she's been
unable to find space to rent in commercial or industrial zones.

LaFond is willing to improve the building, which made headlines last
year after its owner invited area students to spray-paint the
exterior.

Lindsey told the zoning board that he regrets that medical marijuana
is a polarizing issue in the state, which he thinks is a disservice to
those on both sides of the debate.

But at least neighbors in the area raised no objections to LaFond's
request to operate from the location, and LaFond would not support
people smoking marijuana in the area - one of the concerns raised by
planning staff.

Building owner Wayne Bowman spoke in favor of the permit, and
encouraged the board to give LaFond the opportunity to reopen for
business, which closed in March after being open temporarily.

"When a little guy is trying to get something done around here, give
him a break," Bowman said.

No one opposed LaFond's application.

Zoning officials, however, said the city-county's policy for medical
marijuana operations limits them to operating in areas zoned for
commercial or industrial use.

In September, the board voted 4-1 to deny a variance request from a
caregiver seeking to operate in a residential area at 1655 Grand Ave.

Board members had the following to say:

Thomas Daniel said there is little difference between that request and
LaFond's proposal, with both proposed in residential areas.

David Wing said he voted to approve the Grand Avenue permit because of
commercial features to the neighborhood that he didn't see at the
Montana Street location.

Todd Collins said he believes marijuana has merit as a medicine, but
raised concerns with clients smoking the drug in a residential area
after leaving the caregiver.

"I don't want to see it in a residential zone," he said.

John Habeger said many are waiting for an outcome of the Montana
Legislature, which is working to amend the state's medical marijuana
laws.

Those changes may include more specific details about how and where
the drug is dispensed.

LaFond, meanwhile, has 30 days to appeal the board's decision in
district court, and says the search continues for a storefront.

"We'll evaluate it and see if it's really worth the time and effort"
to appeal, her attorney said.