Pubdate: Thu, 25 Jun 2015
Source: Denver Post (CO)
Copyright: 2015 The Denver Post Corp
Contact:  http://www.denverpost.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/122
Author: John Wenzel

DENVER COUNTY FAIR STUBS OUT 2015 POT PAVILION AFTER LAWSUIT

The Denver County Fair has canceled its attention-getting Pot 
Pavilion following a class-action lawsuit that accused a vendor of 
handing out marijuana-laced chocolates at last year's event, which 
was supposed to be drug-free.

About a dozen people complained of being given cannabis-infused 
edibles at the pavilion, which drew international attention amid the 
first year of recreational marijuana sales in Colorado.

The County Fair was not implicated in the lawsuit.

The law firm representing attendees, Frascona, Joiner, Goodman and 
Greenstein, P.C., said a settlement was reached late last week, but 
the terms are confidential. Neither of the Colorado marijuana 
companies involved, Full Melt Chocolate and LivWell (which operated 
together at the fair as Beyond Broadway LLC) returned multiple calls 
or emails Wednesday.

Fair organizer Dana Cain, however, said the Pot Pavilion ultimately 
was canceled because of a lack of interest this year.

"In the first year, we got tons of vendor support (and) waves of 
international attention," she said. "But fast-forward a year later, 
and it's completely old hat. There's a huge overload of marijuana 
events in this town now."

Known for its quirky offerings and hip twist on traditional county 
fair programming, the Denver County Fair's Pot Pavilion included 
joint-rolling and marijuana plant-growing competitions, pot-brownie 
judging and paraphernalia displays.

In spite of the passage of Amendment 64, which legalized the sale and 
private use of recreational marijuana, public consumption of cannabis 
is still illegal in Colorado. That forced organizers to hold all 
judging events off-site at a licensed facility. Competitive joint 
rollers, for example, used oregano instead of weed in their competitions.

"The fact that we even got the National Western Complex (where the 
fair was held) to agree was a miracle, so we had to promise them 
there would be no pot consumption," Cain said.

Cain said holding a marijuana-themed event without any actual 
marijuana may seem problematic to outsiders. But it was not the sole 
reason to retire the Pot Pavilion.

"We never wanted to be the Cannabis Cup," Cain said, referring to 
High Times Magazines' annual marijuana competition and industry 
festival. "We're the Denver County Fair, so we're celebrating 
everything that's unique about Denver, and last year that was 
definitely marijuana."

Cain also said pre-sales for vendor booths at the 2015 Pot Pavilion 
were less than 10 percent of last year's at this time. The 2014 Fair 
included 57 vendors on the third floor of the National Wester Complex.

Attendance at the Denver County Fair was up 23 percent in 2014 over 
the previous year, with an estimated 20,000 people - most of them 
families with children under 18, according to Cain.

This year, the Pot Pavilion will be replaced with a Kitten Pavilion, 
which Cain said already is attracting out-of-state attention and visitors.

"We just didn't want to overdose on marijuana," she said.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom