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Michigan - City Council has placed a temporary halt on the use of land and buildings, for certain medical marijuana uses. It will not deny a properly licensed person from using medical marijuana in the privacy of his or her home, city attorney Stephen Schultz said.

 The emergency ordinance freezes the status quo in Fenton but doesn’t prohibit the use of medical marijuana in the city, said Schultz. “We are denying the use of land and buildings for certain, specified activities.”

 State law authorizes the use and growing of medical marijuana, but it doesn’t contain provisions for local governments on how to deal with it, Schultz said. The law potentially allows commercial marijuana growing operations of as many as 60 plants. One person would grow these and provide medical marijuana for other patients, he said.

  It would be a fairly significant operation, in terms of the number of plants, electricity needed, ventilation and water needs. This would have to be inside a locked and secure building. Where the building would be, and its nature and construction, are issues with building code requirements, Schultz said. Fenton’s ordinance never addressed this type of land use, since it wasn’t legal at the time.

 In addition, people in other communities have opened clubs and dispensaries for medical marijuana.

 The ordinance took effect Monday, after council approved it.

  It’s not unusual to enact a zoning moratorium on an emergency basis, so people don’t establish preexisting, lawful, nonconforming uses before city officials can determine what zoning districts these uses should be in, Schultz said.

 Fenton’s present zoning and land use ordinance doesn’t address marijuana for medical use. City Manager Lynn Markland discussed it with Chief of Police Rick Aro, Building and Zoning Administrator Brad Hissong and Schultz. “We all believe a moratorium should be in place to let our zoning specialists look at the matter and report back to council,” Markland said.

 Schultz proposed an ordinance, which council approved 6-1. Councilwoman Cheryl King voted against it, saying she did not have enough information to feel comfortable approving it.

 Communities are using moratoriums to freeze growing operations and address land use and zoning issues, he said. Fenton’s planning commission will work on land use and zoning concerns and bring a recommendation to city council.

 Councilman Benjamin Smith asked whether the attorney and police chief found something in the city to prompt the ordinance. Aro said police have found two marijuana growing operations. One was legal, and the individual had proper documentation. The other was not.

 One of the difficulties with the medical marijuana law is, it prohibits the Department of Community Health from disclosing who is a card carrier and who is not, Aro said. This presents practical challenges for police and the city, in trying to determine who is a medical marijuana card carrier and who is not.

 Schultz said he and city administrators have looked at what some other local governments are doing in regards to medical marijuana. The city of Grand Rapids has been very helpful to other communities, in sharing its ordinance. 



NewsHawk: Ganjarden: 420 MAGAZINE
Source: Tri-County Times
Author: Anna Troppens
Contact: Tri-County Times
Copyright: 2010 Tri-County Times
Website: Fenton puts freeze on use of land, buildings for medical marijuana


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