Serving Gogebic, Iron and Ontonagon Counties
Serving Gogebic, Iron and Ontonagon Counties
By RALPH ANSAMI
Ironwood — The Ironwood City Commission will consider marijuana matters again in two weeks after a Monday work session addressed the issue.
The five commissioners and city department heads watched a Michigan Municipal League presentation on the marijuana laws and the effects of the recent election, but took no action, nor public comment.
It will be an agenda item at the next city commission meeting, however.
Recreational marijuana use was approved in Michigan in the mid-term election. Previously, only medical pot use in the state was permitted.
The city commission voted once before on opting out of Michigan’s medical marijuana licensing act, but it failed 2-2. At that meeting, Joe Cayer Jr. offered the motion to opt out and it was seconded by Jim Mildren. Rick Semo and Mayor Annette Burchell voted no, however, and Kim Corcoran was absent.
At that time, Burchell said she wanted to see what would happen in November. She then declared the matter tabled.
If the city commission votes to opt in, it would direct the planning commission to draft a medical marijuana ordinance to allow the development of some or all of five medical marijuana facilities allowed by the law.
After Michigan voted to allow marijuana, a group called Smart Approaches to Marijuana Action vowed to support marijuana store bans.
Dr. Kevin Sabet, president of SAM Action, said, “In Michigan, we will take the fight local and stand with citizens who don’t want to see pot shops in their neighborhoods. We are also talking to legal counsel about how to ensure the rights of non-users are upheld.”
“Moving forward, SAM Action and our affiliates will identify communities and work with them to ‘opt-out’ of legalization by banning pot shops and growing facilities like we have done in Colorado, California and Massachusetts,” said Sabet.
Many Michigan communities have already chosen to opt out.
Michigan’s voters decided to legalize marijuana for adult recreational use by a 56-44 percent margin. The measure takes effect next week, but pot won’t be available commercially for sale until around 2020.
Until then, adults can no longer be arrested for simple possession of marijuana.