The Archuleta County Board of County Commissioners is anticipated to consider the second reading of an updated marijuana ordinance for the county Tuesday, July 7, and the proposed ordinance features some significant changes.
The first reading of the ordinance took place on May 5.
The largest of the changes proposed to the ordinance would, if approved, allow a limited number of grow operations in unincorporated Archuleta County not associated with a store.
Under the ordinance currently in place, all optional premises cultivation operations, both medical and retail, must be associated with a store and be on the same footprint.
In the proposed ordinance, medical cultivation facilities will still have to be associated with a medical marijuana center or infused product manufacturer licensed by the county, and product can only be provided to entities licensed by either the county or Town of Pagosa Springs.
Too, a proposed change to the ordinance would require that “no less than seventy percent (70%) of the product grown under the option premises cultivation operation license is made available for sale to the public through a facility licensed in Archuleta County.”
A limited number of retail grow operations, however, will be allowed if the ordinance passes, with those facilities not required to be associated with a store or other facility.
The proposed changes to section 6.05.2, regarding those retail grow operations, states: “There shall be no more than four (4) Retail Optional Premises Cultivation Licenses issued in Archuleta County. License applications will be accepted for review on a ‘first come, first served’ basis, commencing at 8:00 a.m. on the first Monday following the adoption of this ordinance. All other applications shall be processed in order of receipt. In the event that an application is denied by the Licensing Authority, the Authority staff will process the next application in priority of time. Existing licenses shall count against the four 940 licenses such that two (2) new licenses are available.”
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