Title
Ordinance No. 18-51 amending Section 205 (Additional Standards for Specific Land Uses) of Part 2 (Commercial Districts) of Article 3 (Land Use Zoning Districts) of Chapter 7 (Planning, Development and Building) of the Code of the City of Colorado Springs 2001, as amended, pertaining to the cultivation of marijuana and medical marijuana in violation of the Zoning Code and providing remedies for the violation thereof (Legislative)
Presenter:
Mattie Albert Gullixson, Senior Regulatory Compliance Analyst
Body
Summary:
The proposed ordinance would explicitly prohibit the growth, cultivation or processing of marijuana or medical marijuana in commercial spaces, unless licensed by the City of Colorado Springs. The ordinance clarifies existing language under the City's Zoning Code (Section 7.2.108) that prohibits land uses not specifically permitted or allowed under a similar use determination.
The ordinance is developed in conjunction with two additional, complementary ordinances: an ordinance that revises the City's Criminal Code to reflect the proposed clarification to the City's Zoning Code; and an ordinance that revises the criminal code language around unlawful transfer of marijuana. All three ordinances were developed in support of the city's public safety efforts to reduce diversion of marijuana to the black market, and to ensure the public health and life safety of businesses and first responders.
Previous Council Action:
N/A
Background:
In November 2000, Colorado voters passed Amendment 20 that authorized limited possession and use of medical marijuana. A decade after Amendment 20, the Colorado State Legislature approved legislation licensing the commercial production and distribution of medical marijuana. While the medical marijuana industry was legitimized in Colorado State Statute, caregivers and patients remained able to grow their own medical marijuana in residential properties with allowances up to 99 plants.
Years after the ...
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