Pubdate: Sat, 14 Aug 2010
Source: News-Herald, The (Southgate, MI)
Copyright: 2010 Heritage Newspapers
Contact: http://www.heritagenews.com/lettertoeditor/
Website: http://www.thenewsherald.com
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/4015
Author: Anne Sullivan

TRENTON: CITY STUDIES LOCATION OF POTENTIAL MEDICINAL MARIJUANA
DISTRIBUTOR

TRENTON - Guidelines for the growth and use of medicinal marijuana in
the city are being considered by officials.

It's not a question of whether the city will allow it - it's a
question of where, Mayor Gerald Brown said.

"The people passed it," he said. "We have to deal with it and want to
be sure we do it legitimately, with controls."

The November 2008 statewide ballot proposal passed with 63 percent of
the vote. It won in every county.

Now called the Michigan Medical Marijuana Act, it allows for the use
and cultivation of marijuana for certain physician-approved medical
conditions, including glaucoma, cancer, HIV, AIDS, hepatitis C,
amyotrophic lateral sclerosis,some multiple sclerosis symptoms and
others approved by the Michigan Department of Community Health.

There is a $100 fee to apply to the program. The fee can be reduced
under some circumstances, but not waived.

The state has received 47,021 applications for medical marijuana use
since April 6, 2009, according to the Department of Community Health.
The state has issued 23,350 permits and denied 6,122
applications.

A patient can withdraw by notifying the Michigan Medical Marijuana
Program, notifying a caregiver within 14 days and returning the
registration card, according to the department.

A Tacoma, Wash.-based, firm has inquired about locating a marijuana
manufacturing operation in the city, Brown said. He did not name the
firm, but said it has been looking at other Downriver communities, as
well.

A six-month moratorium on medical marijuana operations is in place as
city officials establish guidelines and consider zoning changes to
allow for the cultivation, sale and use of medicinal marijuana.

"I told him (the business owner) it's not going to be received well,"
said Brown, a retired police chief. "People in residential areas are
not too gung-ho about having such an operation here.

"To be quite frank, if I had my druthers, I wouldn't have it
here."

Trenton isn't the only community looking at this right now, City
Attorney Wallace Long said.

"Across the whole state, everyone is dealing with it absent any
regulations promulgated by the state that gives guidance," he said.

Like Trenton, most municipalities have an interest in where these
facilities would be located, and will have to change zoning ordinances
to allow it in certain areas, Long said.

Among the issues to address are limiting how close these facilities
can be to a school or a day care facility, Long said.

An ordinance that mirrors the state law was introduced to the City
Council last month, he said. It is the first step in establishing
zoning regulations and guidelines for the cultivation and use of
medicinal marijuana in the city.

Under state law, anyone with specific chronic conditions with
debilitating pain can go to a doctor to certify the condition and take
the certification to get medicinal marijuana, Long said.

"It is not a prescription, just a diagnosis," he said.

The patient then registers with the state, and is permitted to possess
and consume marijuana, Long said.

A patient can cultivate or buy medicinal marijuana from someone who
agrees to be a principal caregiver, Long said.

The caregiver cannot be the patient's personal physician, according to
the state. The caregiver can supply the marijuana to up to five
people, but must have less than 2.5 ounces for each person and no more
than 12 plants in an enclosed and locked facility.

The marijuana can be provided in any form for ingestion, such as a
leafy substance or pulverized, he said.

"There is a full range of ways to ingest it in a variety of forms,
including eating brownies or smoking," Long said.

"Not in every instance will a person suffering from cancer be in a
position to grow marijuana, and has to rely on someone to supply it.
It has to be a person recognized as a primary caregiver."

Use and consumption is monitored by the state, and no one can possess
more than 2 ounces of marijuana, he said.

A second reading of the city's proposed ordinance will be done after
the council has seen the proposed zoning changes to allow for these
operations, Long said. He expects that the review process will take 90
days.

Wyandotte and Southgate also have been approached about a site to
manufacture medicinal marijuana.

"It will not be so restrictive as to prevent them from coming," Long
said. "That is not the spirit of the law.

"It's inevitable some communities will be more restrictive than
others, and there will probably be lawsuits in another 12 months' time.

"I think this will settle into a pretty standardized pattern across
the state. It just takes time." 
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MAP posted-by: Jo-D