The morning after 71 percent of Florida voters approved the use of medical marijuana for people with debilitating medical conditions, Miami Beach passed a four-month ban on the opening of medical marijuana dispensaries.
Commissioners voted 5-1 to Wednesday to start moratorium, with Commissioner Michael Grieco opposing. Commissioner Rick Arriola, who sponsored the ordinance, said the measure is meant to give the city time to create regulations for where the dispensaries can open. Mayor Philip Levine was absent.
Grieco said he was concerned that the commission might be ignoring the will of a majority of Miami Beach voters by creating a moratorium longer than the one already built into the passage of Amendment 2, which is 60 days.
That 60-day window is supposed to allow the state Legislature to pass any relevant laws for implementation and the Florida Department of Health to create rules for dispensaries related to licensing, security and other issues.
While arguing that the city should hustle to develop its own zoning regulations within the 60-day window, Grieco pointed to existing regulations on low-THC cannabis for cancer patients as an indication of what the state will do in the next few months.
“We know where they’re going to go,” he said. “We can get a draft legislation in place so when they’re ready to go, we can press play.”
Arriola proposed the moratorium in the wake of discussions with Ocean Drive business owners has brokered a plan for revamping the popular tourist attraction. On Wednesday, he said he wants to move fast but wants to pass sensible legislation to make sure residents and businesses aren’t complaining about neighboring dispensaries later.
“I voted in favor of this myself,” he said. “I don’t want to go against the will of the people. It’s just that government moves slow.”
Miami Beach Police Chief Dan Oates, whose previous position as the top cop in Aurora, Colorado, at a time when medical and recreational marijuana were legalized, advised commissioners that planning for the opening of medical marijuana businesses can take time.
“In the community where I worked in in Colorado, all of this evolved and all of this was debated and discussed over years.”
After passing the moratorium, the commission unanimously voted to fast-track the development of local zoning regulations in an effort to work withing the state’s 60-day rule-making period. City planners are expected to present draft legislation next week to the commission’s land use committee.
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Full Article: Miami Beach Passes Four-Month Moratorium On Medical Marijuana Dispensaries
Author: Joey Flechas
Contact: Miami Herlad
Photo Credit: Joe Rondone
Website: Miami Herlad