Pubdate: Wed, 10 Aug 2005 Source: Monitor-Examiner (CN NS) Copyright: 2005 Monitor-Examiner Contact: http://www.monitorexaminer.ca/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/3467 Author: Lawrence Powell VILLAGE SAYS NO TO HEMP FEST Noise, Notoriety Too Much For Lawrencetown Lawrencetown doesn't want another Atlantic Hemp Fest and has already made its wishes known to the Annapolis Valley Exhibition board of directors. But if the event does go ahead for a third year, village commission chair Lynette Gilks wants restrictions placed on activities so local residents won't be disturbed by the blare of rock and roll music in the middle of the night. Festival organizer, Debbie Stultz-Giffin, has no plans to shut down the fledgling festival and said she's more than willing to sit down with the village to iron out any concerns villagers may have. Negative national publicity from the arrests of two keynote festival speakers, plus excessive noise late into the night, sparked Gilks to take her concerns to the exhibition board August 2, two days after the event ended. Gilks said she will meet with the exhibition board in September to discuss the issue further. She said if the village commission isn't satisfied, a public meeting would have to be called. The second annual Atlantic Hemp Fest, July 29-31, was organized by Stultz-Giffin's group Maritimers United for Medical Marijuana and featured several dozen bands, speakers, and a concession area where hemp products were sold. Stultz-Giffin said this year's hemp fest was an overwhelming success from the perspective of MUMM's mandate of education, fundraising, and lobbying. She estimated that about 400 people attended the event. Annapolis County councillor Phil Milo, who represents Lawrencetown, was also at the exhibition board meeting August 2 and said he will also attend the meeting in September. He said he expects representatives of the hemp fest will also attend. "We're willing, definitely 100 per cent more than willing, to sit at the table and discuss any concerns the community may have," Stultz-Giffin said. "We're willing to work conjunctively with the exhibition and the community to make this event happen. With the level of support and encouragement from bands, musicians, volunteer staff, MUMM members, and participants, it is an experience we want to repeat." Gilks said the village is sympathetic to the medical marijuana cause but she doesn't see the connection between MUMM's agenda and the need for load music and whooping and hollering in the middle of the night. "We were sort of held hostage by the hemp fest," she said. "And community members were upset with the bad publicity." Residents upset She received several calls from upset residents, received more complaints on the street, plus three irate Lawrencetown residents attended the village's regular monthly meeting August 1 to voice their concerns. Gilks noted that the county does have a bylaw that prohibits excessive noise but it doesn't apply to the exhibition grounds. The Orderly and Peaceful Conduct Bylaw, dated May, 2002, includes under the heading General Prohibitions, the clause: "No person shall engage in any activity that unreasonably disturbs or tends to disturb the peace and tranquility of a neighbourhood." The bylaw applies 24 hours a day. However, under another clause, the exhibition and Upper Clements Park are listed as exempt. Stultz-Giffin said the noise issue is something that can be addressed. "It wasn't our intention to (play music) after 1:30 a.m.," she said. "We're more than willing to keep that in mind for another year. It was not our intention to come in and disrupt the village." Exhibition manager John Longley said the hemp fest crowd treated the grounds with respect and left it in good condition. He said from his perspective, MUMM was a model weekend tenant. Arrests Stultz-Giffin said the arrest of two of the event's participants was beyond the control of organizers and unfortunate. Marc Emery, a marijuana seed exporter from Vancouver was arrested July 29 outside Lawrencetown Restaurant on a warrant requested by the American Drug Enforcement Agency. Emery, also publisher and editor in chief of the magazine Cannabis Culture, was schedule to speak at the hemp fest and was to perform master of ceremonies duties. Rick Reimer, a lawyer and medical marijuana activist from Ontario, was arrested at about 1:30 a.m. July 31 and charged with intoxication in a public place. He spent the rest of the night in jail and when released said he will return to Nova Scotia to fight the charge which he termed bogus. RCMP Const. Joe Taplin in Halifax confirmed Friday that police had received one public complaint against RCMP in the Reimer arrest and a second complaint was expected. He said the complaints to H Division's Internal Services will be investigated by a senior officer. Witnesses to the arrest said Reimer, a speaker and entertainer at the festival, was not intoxicated and was roughly handled by an RCMP officer. Reimer suffers from multiple sclerosis, walks with a staff because of mobility problems, and often slurs his speech. Cpl. Dave Cunningham in Middleton, said the charge was laid with integrity and will stand. Reimer said he won't pay the $111 fine and will enter a not guilty plea September 12 at provincial court in Annapolis Royal. Emery was held in a detention facility in Dartmouth over the weekend after his arrest and was to be transported to Vancouver where he could be extradited to the United States to face three conspiracy charges related to his seed export business. - --- MAP posted-by: Derek