Many issues related to the opening of medical marijuana dispensaries in Crawford were discussed at the Jan. 20 work session. The meeting was moved upstairs from town hall to the community room to accommodate members of the public who attended the meeting. In addition to trustees, the mayor and town staff, Delta County Sheriff Fred McKee and town attorney James Brown attended. Crawford’s first dispensary opened this week at Highway 92 and Elm across from Pioneer Park.

In attendance were Delta County Sheriff Fred McKee and town attorney James Brown. All the trustees were present except for Darren Dworsky. Mayor Jim Crook conducted the meeting. County commissioner Olen Lund and Undersheriff Mark Taylor were also present.

James Brown gave the history of the six-month moratorium on allowing dispensaries to open in Crawford town limits. This was passed on Dec. 9 by the town council. Colorado voters approved allowing certain patients to use marijuana to relieve pain with a physician’s approval. The patient is given a card allowing the person to purchase marijuana from a care giver. The term care giver was not clearly defined in the amendment. The federal justice department announced this year it would not prosecute medical marijuana use. This led those who wanted to open a medical marijuana dispensary to say they were care givers.

“Crawford is not charged with enforcement of federal or state law,” Brown stated. The town is charged with regulating and licensing the dispensaries much like is done for establishments that sell or serve liquor. A municipality cannot deny a liquor license application on philosophical grounds. It can be denied only if it is a threat to the safety, health and welfare of the public or some other reason laid out in the liquor licensing law.

Brown advised the town council can only look at regulations at the town level such as where it is appropriate to have a dispensary and where it would be inappropriate. Brown stated one of the problems with the amendment is that it does not define what a bona fide physician/patient relationship is. But that issue is not one the town can decide. That will be decided by the legislature. State law will overlay any regulations Crawford adopts.

Sheriff McKee, just back from a sheriff’s conference, said the Colorado Department of Environmental Health was to enforce the requirements of the amendment. However, dispensaries were not included in the amendment as caregivers. He said big money from California is paying for lobbyists and lawyers to promote dispensaries opening in Colorado. After the 2000 amendment until about 2004, there were only a 1,000 medical marijuana cardholders. In 2009, there were 21,000 cardholders. Six hundred applications are received a week to become cardholders, most of which were requested by just three doctors. Originally, the average age of cardholders were in their 50s. Now, the average age is dropping dramatically getting into the 20s.

McKee alleged the Department of Environmental Health did not provide proper enforcement. “Law enforcement doesn’t want to eliminate dispensaries, they want regulations,” McKee said. A strict definition of a caregiver is needed. McKee added a bill being considered in the legislature at this time would do a lot to regulate dispensaries in Colorado. “There will be no money in it [for dispensary owners].” He stated he was not there to override Amendment 20. “If people need medical marijuana they should have it.”

McKee is concerned about armed robberies that have happened in Grand Junction outside a dispensary. There were two shoot outs in Adams County with 40 rounds of ammunition fired and two officers and a passerby shot. Law enforcement is also concerned about the redistribution of marijuana. A trend in bigger cities is that dispensaries become a hang out for kids trying to buy marijuana from card holders.

Brown asked McKee how much law enforcement is available for Crawford? McKee said there are three deputies on shift in the entire county. He said deputies are spending more time in Crawford and he felt that was adequate coverage. Undersheriff Taylor stated on an average day, a deputy can respond to a call in the North Fork Valley within 15 to 20 minutes. McKee said dispensary licensing procedures should include requirements for surveillance cameras and how much product is in the dispensary at one time. “That would drive down burglaries.”

The sheriff department in the past would seize marijuana in cornfields. Today they photograph the scene and check if the grower is a cardholder. There are stiff penalties for destroying marijuana plants if it is from a legitimate grower.

Crawford resident James Sorensen presented to the council and town attorney a petition signed by those opposed to dispensaries and a copy of “Key Points for Dispensary Law.” It comprised 24 ideas on what to consider for inclusion in any town ordinance regulating dispensaries. The trustees, mayor, attorney and members of the public who stayed for the second half of the work session shared their ideas. Attorney Brown will prepare a draft ordinance incorporating regulations that he feels are reasonable and could be found justifiable by a court, should the town be challenged with a lawsuit.

Among the items discussed for consideration in an ordinance were:

• 24-hour surveillance of the dispensary with the recordings held for 72 hours at an off-site secure location. The recordings would be used by law enforcement in the event of a burglary, robbery or some other crime committed on-site.

• No marijuana is to be visible from outside premises, actual or representative.

• Applicants shall be subject to a background check and pay all costs associated with the background check. Currently, this is part of licensing application currently used by people seeking a liquor license.

• Application and annual license fees will be charged to help pay for administrative and law enforcement costs.

• Marijuana is to be properly stored. Sorensen suggested a safe that is part of the structure.

• No firearms will be allowed in the dispensary.

• No loitering will be allowed at the dispensary.

• No one other than a cardholder will be allowed on the premises.

• Business lighting and/or signage shall not interfere with neighbor’s peaceful enjoyment and or traffic safety. Brown pointed out the town should have this type of provision to cover all types of businesses not just dispensaries.

• The dispensary shall comply with all state and federal laws.

• The dispensary shall provide adequate liability insurance. Brown said liability insurance is not an element in current liquor licensing requirements.

• If the dispensary sells any edibles, it will provide a current health inspection certificate. If any food preparation is done on the premises, the dispensary must have a commercial kitchen. Mayor Crook stated marijuana brownies do not fall under current health regulations on bakeries. Brown said it was not a town issue.

• The dispensary shall not be located within 500 or 1,000 feet of a school, licensed child care facility, park, day care center or another dispensary. A dispensary shall not be located within 100 feet of a residential dwelling. Brown said the distances must be reasonable for the neighborhood.

• The dispensary shall be A.D.A. compliant.

• The town will set hours and days of operation for the dispensary.

Brown said he will look into current law to see if the dispensary can sell paraphernalia. He also gave the trustees a list of standards developed by the City of Delta.

Another concern expressed was what happens to neighboring property values when a dispensary opens business.

Brown believes because the Town of Crawford has a population of 397, the council could have a regulation restricting the number of dispensaries permitted in town. The town has restricted how many liquor stores can be in town.

Regarding inspection of marijuana plants to be sold by a dispensary, Mayor Crook said the USDA has one inspector for the Western Slope who randomly inspects businesses once a year. Plants from other areas are USDA inspected prior to coming into the state. It is assumed the USDA would inspect the marijuana plants as well.

None of the possible stipulations listed above are in effect. They are issues the council and the town attorney are reviewing. Any regulations for the dispensaries would have to be voted on by the mayor and trustees at a public town council meeting. The council will next discuss possible regulations at the Feb. 17 work session at 7 p.m.

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