Pubdate: Tue, 17 May 2011 Source: Windsor Beacon (CO) Copyright: 2011 Windsor Beacon Contact: http://mapinc.org/url/MewvPUJ5 Website: http://www.windsorbeacon.com Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/4693 Author: Ashley Keesis-Wood WINDSOR'S MEDICAL CANNABIS DISPENSARIES CLOSE DOORS The medical marijuana era in Windsor is over. Both of the town's dispensaries, In Harmony Wellness Center and A New Dawn Wellness Clinic, closed their doors for good on Sunday, in keeping with an ordinance passed by the town board in January. "We checked for compliance this morning and both businesses did comply," said Windsor Police Chief John Michaels. Medical marijuana first became an issue in December 2009 when the town board learned that in addition to In Harmony Wellness Center, which had opened in June 2009, and A New Dawn Wellness Clinic, which opened earlier that December, there were six other dispensaries in the process of opening in Windsor. The town board put a moratorium into place to prevent the opening of other dispensaries while it began work on an ordinance. Work was halted after a couple of work sessions until after three new board members, Mike Carrigan, Kristie Melendez and Don Thompson were seated in April 2010. The town board unanimously passed on July 27 an ordinance that would regulate and restrict the number of medical marijuana dispensaries that are allowed to locate in the town. Less than a month later, a citizen-initiated petition put a question on the November 2010 ballot asking whether all dispensaries in town should be banned. Former town board members Michael Kelly and Nancy Weber helped to circulate the petition. In November, Windsor residents voted overwhelmingly (66 percent) to ban all dispensaries in town. The vote required the town board to create an ordinance to ban any and all dispensaries which it did in January. - --- MAP posted-by: Richard R Smith Jr.