A.G. Gancarski
The Tuesday afternoon joint Charlotte’s Web workshop between Jacksonville’s Planning Commission and Land Use and Zoning drew few people.
A few nurses and a smattering of other interested parties showed to discuss 2015-485, an ordinance establishing a partial moratorium on cultivation for 90 days (banned except in agricultural zones) and a full 120-day moratorium on dispensing the medication.
Between the two committees, the people on the platform outnumbered those in the audience.
Set to start at 4 p.m, the meeting began late as panelists kibitzed and worked out the mechanics of seating.
Chairman Scott Wilson started the meeting seven minutes after the hour, and called up City Attorney Susan Grandin to discuss history, as a preamble to a discussion of zoning, specifically relative to location criteria, and state statutory law, specifically the Compassionate Use Act.
“We are thinking about having a temporary moratorium,” she said, but the zoning code has to be modified to address what previously was an “illegal use” of cannabis.
Discussion of what constituted low-THC cannabis followed, before Grandin broke down the regions of the state, and requirements for getting certified to grow that strain of marijuana.
Grandin described the limitations on cultivation, specifically the 30-year rule, as “onerous,” meaning someone can’t just grow it in one’s backyard.
Ability to receive zoning approval, part of the statute, is what Grandin said the workshop was intended to address.
“You can’t just have a doctor prescribe this for you,” Grandin said. “You have to be on a registry.”
A discussion of grow methods in Colorado and California followed, then a discussion of the logistics of processing cannabis into oil at a nursery.
“That could probably go anywhere where that kind of facility is allowed,” Grandin observed.
Grandin mentioned that CVS and Walgreens already dispense cocaine and other narcotics, but she is unsure whether those corporate monoliths would want to take on cannabis.
Mail-order dispensing was also mentioned as an alternative.
Councilman Lori Boyer spoke up next, asking about the five regions in the state and suggesting that the applications are partnerships between growers, dispensaries, and medical experts.
She also wanted to know what statutory limitations there are on dispensaries; Grandin responded that was a matter of “local control.”
Boyer continued, explaining the cultivation moratorium except in AGR zoned areas. She was curious as to whether some of those AGR areas might be close to schools, and so on, and how many acres of AGR are in Duval.
The answer: about 30 percent with much of it in the periphery of the county.
The comparison was then made by a planning commission member to “adult entertainment facilities,” with the idea of limiting such so that a “red light district” is not created for this anti-seizure medication for seriously ill children.
Boyer brought up the mail-order trope, adding that it couldn’t be cultivated in a retail location, before likening restrictions to Publix not being able to sell beer to people under 21.
A planning commission member mentioned that out West there are “grass stations,” converted gas stations that apparently affect property values where they have “created a whole new type of transient behavior.”
No proof was provided for the assertion, other than the woman had “spent some time out West.”
Then, leaving the realm of Reefer Madness and speaking from the 21st century, Jim Love spoke up and said that it is in fact medicine in its current form, designed to address a specific need.
“There’s a big difference between a medicine and for recreational use. I don’t see this being sold in Publix except in its pharmacy,” Love added.
Boyer brought the discussion back to “independent dispensaries,” mentioning quantitative and geographic restrictions.
She then mentioned a “methadone clinic” on the Southside, which has had a “very detrimental effect on the neighborhood.”
(Note: Having been to that neighborhood, that is not its sole problem.)
“The people who go to methadone clinics are drug addicts,” said Grandin, drawing a meaningful distinction.
She also wondered if a free-standing dispensary would draw enough revenue to stay in business for very long.
Then a representative for the Sheriff’s Office spoke, explaining state statute.
“Whoever is granted the license for NE Florida must cultivate, prescribe, and dispense,” he said.
Christopher Ralph then addressed the “issue with the pharmacies.” They have stocked medicines, yet lack the ability to modify the medicine, and cannot dispense medicines, like cannabis, that are not FDA approved.
A discussion of pill mills followed, in which Ralph contrasted low-THC cannabis with opiates.
“If there was a doctor on site dispensing it, a different standard may be set,” he said.
After some discussion, Boyer observed that the state may preempt some of their decision, and that if medical doctors are dispensing, that could happen in a lot of places.
“There’s probably two aspects of the dispensing that we’re going to have to be able to address,” Boyer added.
A planning commission member then asked about processing, whether there are “noxious odors,” and comparing it, somehow, to a meth lab.
Signage was also discussed. Ralph mentioned that Fort Collins, Colo., dispensaries limit the word marijuana or pictures of leaves on signs, which ameliorated community concerns.
Expect more discussion on how to formulate this moratorium in a month or so, as the group attempts to figure out how to handle these pressing public safety matters. In the meantime, the Land Use and Zoning committee is considering the moratorium on Tuesday evening.
What is clear: even under this moratorium, the cultivation could happen in agricultural areas.
“Even though they’re a weed, it takes a while to grow these things,” said Grandin.
