Pubdate: Mon, 22 Aug 2011
Source: Glenwood Springs Post Independent (CO)
Copyright: 2011 Glenwood Springs Post Independent
Contact: http://drugsense.org/url/ys97xJAX
Website: http://www.postindependent.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/821
Author: John Stroud
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?277 (Cannabis - Medicinal -  Colorado)

MEDICAL MARIJUANA'S INFLUENCE ON YOUTH TALKED OVER AT GLENWOOD 
SPRINGS CITY COUNCIL

Business Licensing Gets Approval, but More Future Discussion Is Welcomed

GLENWOOD SPRINGS, Colorado -- A new ordinance spelling out licensing 
procedures for medical marijuana dispensaries, commercial growing 
operations and other related businesses is the latest in the city's 
attempt to regulate the industry locally.

The measure closely mirrors the rules and regulations spelled out in 
the state of Colorado's licensing requirements. The ordinance was 
adopted Aug. 18 by Glenwood Springs City Council on a 5-1 vote.

But the latest move by the city to permit and regulate medical 
marijuana businesses didn't come without some questions about the 
message the permissive environment is sending to young people in the community.

"It's not just a medical marijuana issue in this town," said Mary 
Rippy, a local teacher and longtime board member for the YouthZone 
organization, which provides programs for at-risk youth.

"This is becoming an issue of recreational use of marijuana, and it 
is impacting our kids," she said.

Rippy asked that council postpone action on the ordinance until a 
broader community forum on the subject can be convened. She said the 
Glenwood Springs Chamber is currently organizing such a discussion, 
which is intended to bring the varying opinions around the issue to the table.

"YouthZone's stance is that any kind of marijuana use is bad, and 
medical marijuana is making it easier for kids to get their hands on 
it," she said.

Use of medical marijuana by persons with qualifying medical 
conditions was legalized in 2000 when state voters approved Amendment 
20. It wasn't until 2009 that commercial dispensaries started 
cropping up across Colorado, prompting the state and local 
jurisdictions to begin crafting regulations to control the industry. 
Marijuana remains illegal under federal law, however.

"When Amendment 20 was voted in 2000, I'd have to say I was a little 
ambivalent about it. In fact, probably voted for the amendment," said 
council member Mike Gamba.

"All I know is that, today, what is happening with medical marijuana 
is a farce, and there is recreational use happening as a result," 
said Gamba, who voted against the ordinance in favor of waiting for a 
broader discussion of the issue.

Other councilors disagreed, and said the licensing ordinance and a 
companion zoning ordinance adopted earlier this year are aimed at 
putting the necessary controls in place to keep medical marijuana out 
of the hands of those who aren't authorized to have it.

"By doing nothing, and by not approving this, we're only making the 
problem worse," Councilman Todd Leahy said.

Added Councilman Leo McKinney, "The people of the state passed the 
medical marijuana law, and for us to usurp that is asinine. This is a 
way to make it a better situation."

There is evidence that medical marijuana sold to authorized patients 
is sometimes being re-dispensed to those who aren't authorized to 
possess marijuana, Glenwood Springs Police Chief Terry Wilson said at 
the Aug. 18 meeting.

"Over the last couple of years, it's been almost rare that we deal 
with someone 15 or older who doesn't have marijuana on them," Wilson 
said. "Frequently, we find that in medical marijuana packaging."

In some cases, card-carrying patients and "caregivers," those 
authorized by state law to possess and provide marijuana to patients, 
have been caught selling marijuana on the street, including to minors, he said.

Myles Rovig, who sits on the Roaring Fork School District board but 
said he was speaking on his own behalf, told council members that the 
number of school expulsions and suspensions related to marijuana 
distribution and possession on school property has increased in recent years.

"I believe the unintended consequences of medical marijuana have been 
borne out in the last couple of years," he said.

However, one Glenwood Springs medical marijuana dispensary owner, Dan 
Sullivan of Green Medicine Wellness, said the combination of state 
and local regulations should ultimately provide the necessary safeguards.

"The same abuse that can happen with medical marijuana can happen 
with alcohol and prescription drugs," Sullivan said. "That is a 
parent issue, and a school issue.

"The microscope is on us every which way," he said. "And that's 
absolutely the way it should be. If we don't do it right, the state 
will take my license away."
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom