Pubdate: Thu, 18 Nov 2010
Source: Daily Reporter-Herald (Loveland, CO)
Copyright: 2010 The Daily Reporter-Herald
Contact: http://www.reporterherald.com/customerservice/forms/openforum.asp
Website: http://www.reporterherald.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1710
Author: Jackie Hutchins
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?277 (Cannabis - Medicinal -  Colorado)

DISPENSARY PLAN HITS STUMBLING BLOCK BUT WILL GO BEFORE COUNTY AGAIN

FORT COLLINS -- Larimer County Planning Commission members told James 
Hinojos they liked his business plan for the medical marijuana 
dispensary he wants to open on College Avenue south of Carpenter Road.

But after hearing many neighbors tell their concerns about the 
business at a hearing Wednesday night, the planning commissioners 
voted 7-1 to recommend that the county commissioners deny his special 
review request.

The Loveland man is seeking a special review of the dispensary and an 
appeal of the requirement that the business be at least 500 feet from 
any homes.

He proposed using a 550-square-foot corner of the Novus Auto Glass 
building at 7704 S. College Ave. that is 484 feet away from the nearest home.

Rob Helmick of the county Planning Department said the county's 
regulation is more restrictive than the state regulation put in place 
earlier this year, and the proposed business did meet the state criteria.

One of the major criteria of the special review decision is 
compatibility, Gerald Hart of the Planning Commission said. He said 
he did not think that criterion was met.

Hart told Hinojos and the crowd of neighbors that the Planning 
Commission recommendation will go forward to the Board of County 
Commissioners for a final decision, and they will all have another 
chance to present their views.

Planning commissioner Curtis Miller said he initially was opposed to 
the request, but after reviewing it, seeing where it is and the 
security planned, and in view of Loveland and Windsor closing down 
dispensaries, he was inclined to believe the proposed facility would 
be one of the only dispensaries available for Loveland residents.

Commissioner Jana Hess said she was part of the group that set the 
county's distance requirement last January.

"While I think you are an excellent applicant, I am loath to break 
that distance," she told Hinojos. "I haven't for anybody, and I won't for you."

And commissioner Karen Weitkunat said she did not think the proposal 
warranted some of the fear coming from the neighborhood, but the 
dispensary has to be compatible with existing uses and in harmony 
with neighbors

"From the discussion we've heard, that harmony just isn't there," she 
said, adding that she thinks Hinojos would be extremely successful if 
he found a different location.

Hinojos told commissioners his business would be professional, with 
no marijuana visible from outside. "We're not painting our building 
green," he said.

Hinojos said he is looking at putting bar codes on his product, so if 
it gets into the hands of someone who shouldn't have it, he would be 
able to trace it back to who bought it.

Eighteen people spoke during Wednesday's public hearing, most of them 
neighbors with concerns.

Cottonwood Plains Elementary School is nearby, 3,150 feet away, and 
some people were concerned about the dispensary's proximity to children.

Others were concerned about the effect on property values and whether 
there is adequate law enforcement to handle any problems at the dispensary.

"Certainly that facility will be too close to our neighborhood and 
all the people who live around us, and a variance is not called for, 
under any circumstances," neighbor Bob Wood said.

"I adamantly oppose this. This is my neighborhood, and I do not want 
them in my neighborhood," Jeff Vanhook said.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom