Pubdate: Fri, 20 Jan 2012 Source: Washington Afro American, The (DC) Contact: https://www.afro.com/contact-us.htm Copyright: 2012 AFRO Website: https://www.afro.com/sections/news/washington/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/5318 LIMITS SET FOR MEDICAL MARIJUANA CULTIVATION IN D.C. The D.C. Council has approved emergency legislation that would limit the number of medical marijuana cultivation centers to six to be located in any of the city's eight wards, The Washington Post reported Jan. 17. The council had been under pressure from residents in Ward 5, in the city's northeast quadrant, amid concerns that the ward would be overwhelmed by large, indoor pot-growing operations. Under the city's medical marijuana law, 10 cultivation centers would be open citywide, The Post reported. Because the council voted unanimously in 2010 to establish the centers to allow chronically ill patients to obtain the drug without legal penalty, residents have become increasingly concerned about issues of traffic and crime in the neighborhoods where the medical marijuana would be dispensed. According to a council memo, there have been 28 applications "to create and manage" medical marijuana cultivation centers, The Post reported. Of those, 26 were for locations in Ward 5. Seven cultivation centers have received favorable reviews from the Department of Health. Six of the seven are in Ward 5. Under the city law, medical marijuana dispensaries and cultivation centers would be required to be at least 300 feet from schools or recreation centers. Further, cultivation centers are restricted to areas zoned for light industrial activities. Ward 5 has a history of light manufacturing enterprises. - --- MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom