Pubdate: Sun, 08 Mar 2015
Source: San Diego Union Tribune (CA)
Copyright: 2015 Union-Tribune Publishing Co.
Contact:  http://www.utsandiego.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/386
Note: Seldom prints LTEs from outside it's circulation area.
Author: Victoria Cavaliere, Reuters

WASHINGTON TOWN OPENS POT SHOP OPERATED BY GOVERNMENT

SEATTLE - A small town in southern Washington on Saturday opened the 
state's first recreational marijuana store that is both owned and 
operated by the local government, officials said.

Cannabis Corner in North Bonneville, home to about 1,000 people on 
the Columbia River Gorge, will sell a range of marijuana products 
with all profits going back to the local community, city leaders said.

"It's a really great solution for these small, rural communities that 
need to raise a little bit of revenue," said Robyn Legun, general 
manager of Cannabis Corner.

"I think it's a really viable option for other towns and cities like 
this," she said.

Washington and Colorado were the first two U.S. states to legalize 
recreational use of marijuana for adults older than 21 under 2012 
voter initiatives.

In Washington, retail cannabis stores are regulated by the State 
Liquor Control Board under a heavily taxed and closely monitored system.

North Bonneville hatched plans for the retail outlet in 2013, 
creating a public development authority to work through the 
permitting process and raise private money to build the new store, 
city officials said.

The city has no schools in its boundaries and constructed the store 
away from parks or other areas populated by children, as required by state law.

Cannabis Corner's employees hope the store will become another reason 
to visit the city, whose major industry for years was timber but now 
relies heavily on tourists who come to the region to hike, camp, 
windsurf and kitesurf.

But its debut has been met with skepticism by some local officials.

Skamania County Sheriff Dave Brown told the Seattle Times he was 
concerned about a possible uptick in crime and in a surge of use and 
possession by minors.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom