Mentor and Kirtland are among a growing number of municipalities tackling the issue of medical marijuana.
Leaders in both cities are taking steps to establish local control over its official use in their communities.
Mentor City Council on Oct. 18 passed legislation prohibiting cultivation, processing and/or retail dispensing of medical marijuana.
Officials made the move in light of the September enactment of an Ohio law allowing for such activities. The measure provides local jurisdictions the power to ban or limit the number of establishments.
Mentor Law Director Richard Hennig said it likely will take years before the substance actually will be dispensed under the new law. Rules and standards for state licensing of these procedures still are being developed.
He said the prohibition is meant to give Council time to “get a better handle on how this might work and how it is best regulated.”
“I also would remind everyone that federal law still does not permit the consumption of marijuana,” he added.
The city already has received several inquiries about setting up medical marijuana facilities, City Manager Ken Filipiak said.
“I think we would all feel a little bit more comfortable that we don’t have businesses starting before we know what the rules are or what the impact could be,” he said.
The city’s ordinance doesn’t apply to research related to marijuana conducted in accordance with law by a state university, academic medical center or private research and development organization as part of a research protocol approved by an institutional review board or equivalent entity.
In Kirtland, Council passed a six-month moratorium on applications, zoning certificates and occupancy permits for any structure, use or change of use for medical marijuana purposes. A prohibition ordinance was placed on first reading at the Oct. 17 meeting.
“The city is taking a cautious approach in responding to changes in the state law,” Kirtland Mayor Doug Davidson said.
The matter if being referred to the Planning and Zoning Commission, which will make a recommendation to Council.
More than 50 Ohio cities have approved similar moratoriums ranging from six months to two years.
Rules for producing, prescribing and distributing cannabis to eligible patients are expected to take up to a year to craft. The program isn’t required to be fully operational until September 2018.
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Full Article: Mentor, Kirtland Address Medical Marijuana
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