COUNCIL APPROVES MEDICAL MARIJUANA ORDINANCE; HOME OCCUPATION COVERED
WITHIN LANGUAGE

Dexter village residents who exercise their rights under the Michigan
Medical Marijuana Act are now covered in the village's code of ordinances.

The Village Council approved the ordinance changes after a silent
public hearing Monday evening.

The ordinance additions include the definition of "home use
occupation," which is in congruence with the state law, which allows
qualifying patients registered with the Michigan Department of
Community Health to legally cultivate medical marijuana at their
primary residence for personal use with assistance from a primary caregiver.

"The intent of the zoning ordinance is to regulate medical marijuana
home occupations by providing for regulations and feeds in a manner
that promotes and protects the public health, safety and welfare,
mitigates the potential impacts on surrounding properties and person
and that conforms with the policies and requirements of the MMM Act,"
the ordinance reads, with the following regulations included:

- - The medical use of marijuana shall comply at all times and in all
circumstances with the Michigan Medical Marijuan Act and the General
Rules of the Michigan Department of Community Health, as they may be
amended from time to time.

- - Medical Marijuana Home Occupations are not permitted within 1,000
feet of a public school or public library in accordance with the Drug
Free School Zone Act.

- - All medical marijuana shall be contained within the main building in
an enclosed, locked facility.

- - The registered primary caregiver may cultivate marijuana for
compensation, for up to five patients, plus themselves, to whom the
primary caregiver is connected through the Michigan Department of
Community Health registration system.

- - No patients to whom the primary caregiver is not connected through
the Michigan Department of Community Health registration system are
allowed to purchase or receive medical marijuana at the home, nor are
any patient to patient transfers of any kind allowed at the home
except between the primary caregiver and the patients connected to the
primary caregiver.

- - All necessary building, electrical, plumbing and mechanical permits
shall be obtained for any portion of the residential structure in
which electrical wiring, lighting and/or watering devices that support
the cultivation, growing or harvesting of marijuana are located.

- - If a room with windows is utilized as a growing location, any
lighting methods that exceed usual residential periods between the
hours of 11 p.m. and 7 a.m. shall employ shielding methods, without
alteration to the exterior of the residence, to prevent ambient light
spillage that may create a distriction for adjacent residential properties.

- - That portion of the residential structure where energy usage and
heat exceeds typical residential use, such as grow room, and the
storage of any chemicals such as herbicides, pesticides and
fertilizers shall be subject to inspection and approval by the Fire
Department to insure compliance with the Michigan Fire Protection Code.

- - Any person who violates any provision of this article shall be
responsible for violations set forth in Chapter 22, Section 22-10a.
the fine for which is $1,000 for the first offense, $2,000 for the
second and $3,000 for any subsequent violations of the ordinance.

- - Permits may be revoked by the village based on evidence of the
following: fraudulence in the application, violation of the ordinance,
conviction of a felony, conducting the home occupation in an unlawful
manner, conducting home occupation in a manner not in compliance with
the MMM Act, or if the act is held invalid or unconstitutional by any
court.

In addition to the above fine structure, the village approved a $100
permit fee for those seeking to operate under the newly approved home
occupation designation. The application was also approved and will be
posted on the village's website.

The ordinance permits such use within residential zoning or where
single-family dwelling units are present, but commercial uses in
commercial or industrial zoning are still prohibited under the
village's previous medical marijuana dispensary moratorium, which
village officials expect to extend at the July 11 Council meeting.

Community Development Manager Allison Bishop said that her
recommendation would be to extend the moratorium for 12 months at that
meeting.

The recommendation to amend the ordinance with home occupation came
out of the Planning Commission after several months of discussion and
previous explorations of the issue by Village Council members and
staff who have attended several conferences and talked to attorneys
regarding the legal ramifications of medical marijuana to the village.

Council Trustee James Smith asked if perhaps home occupation should
eventually be brought under the moratorium as well, to which Bishop
explained that, pending a further legal opinion clarifying the law
more, prohibiting home occupation use within the village in totality
was a violation of state law on the village's part. Home occupations
of medical marijuana are "specifically permitted in the medical
marijuana law," Bishop said.

"These uses are explicitly permitted today and what people can be
doing today," Bishop said. "This is based on my communication with the
village attorney and based on what's going on in the courts."

Trustee Donna Fisher asked about recent court determinations, but
before getting into too much detail, Bishop said "there are so many
little pieces of the law being challenged that each case will come out
and clarify the act."

Fisher asked if anyone knew if newly-elected State Rep. Mark Ouimet
had made good on his promise to "get (the matter) sorted out" during
his time in Lansing.

"It would take a super majority (two-thirds of voters in a referendum
. to repeal the act) ... I don't think that's going to happen, so
it's going to take a lot of people working very hard (and) little
pieces being decided in court, but it won't be decided anytime soon,"
Bishop said.

Bishop added that village staff will simply continue reviewing the
case law and interpreting the affect that each one has on any proposed
or passed village ordinances going forward.