POULSBO APPROVES MORATORIUM ON MARIJUANA GARDENS

POULSBO -- Collective medical marijuana gardens will not be allowed
in Poulsbo until the city updates its zoning code to account for the
potential impacts of such gardens and where they might best fit into
the community.

The City Council voted unanimously Wednesday night to place a
six-month moratorium on the establishment of these gardens within
city limits, following behind Bremerton and Port Orchard, which
passed similar moratoriums last month. The purpose of the moratorium
is not to prohibit the gardens but instead to make sure the city has
regulations in place to address the gardens if they ever pop up in city limits.

The council approved a different moratorium on the establishment of
medicinal marijuana dispensaries within city limits earlier this
year. That moratorium is set to expire Sept. 16 and the council does
not plan to extend it based on legal advice from the city attorney.
The attorney believes the new moratorium plus actions taken by the
state Legislature will cover the city's legal bases until adequate
changes are made to the city's zoning code.

State legislators passed a bill during the last legislative session
that offered legal guidance for licensing and legalization of medical
marijuana facilities and authorized the establishment of the
collective gardens, but Gov. Chris Gregoire vetoed certain provisions
of the bill. Collective gardens fell under the section not vetoed and
became legal July 22.

The changes to state law allow up to 10 qualified patients to
cultivate collective gardens with up to 15 marijuana plants per
person. No more than 45 total plants are allowed per garden.

"We need to have a process in place that satisfies all parties,"
Councilwoman Connie Lord said of approving the moratorium to give the
council time to discuss the zoning code. "If this is going to be
permitted, we need to figure out where in our zoning that could be."

Troy Barber, the North Kitsap coordinator for Sensible Washington, a
pro-legalization political organization, was the only person to
comment before the moratorium was approved. He asked council members
not approve the moratorium and encouraged them to talk with experts
within the pro-marijuana movement before crafting any laws aimed at
governing medicinal marijuana establishments.

Lord noted Barber's concerns and asked him and others with interest
in the regulations to "work with planning staff on language so that
this can be accommodated at some location under our zoning parameters."

"This ordinance is merely a justification for a moratorium right now
because we don't have something on the books to control this," she
said. "It's a process that welcomes citizen input and all viewpoints
will be evaluated."

Councilmen Ed Stern and David Musgrove expressed equal concern with
the moratorium because they feel local jurisdictions are forced to
respond to an issue that should be addressed at the federal and state levels.

"There are a lot of pits and pitfalls ahead of us when we are
basically being made responsible for regulations of those before us,"
Musgrove said.

The council will hold a public hearing on the moratorium in the next
60 days. It will be in place for sixth months, giving the council
time to address the collective gardens in its zoning code update,
which is set to be finalized at the end of this year.