PORT ANGELES — Clallam County commissioners have extended a temporary ordinance to regulate the recreational marijuana industry.
The county Planning Commission is making good progress on permanent zoning recommendations for future pot farms, processing facilities and retail stores under voter-approved state Initiative 502, Principal Planner Kevin LoPiccolo said.
“We’re very close,” he told commissioners Tuesday.
“We just felt that we needed additional time to formulate [a permanent] ordinance to bring back to the board.”
The Board of County Commissioners approved the temporary zoning rules last October.
While the stopgap measure restricts marijuana businesses from most rural neighborhoods, growers and processors are still allowed to operate in commercial and industrial zones and on some large parcels.
The temporary ordinance would have expired April 7 absent board action.
Commissioners discussed a six-month extension of the ordinance in a work session last month.
In that meeting, LoPiccolo predicted that a permanent ordinance would be ready for board consideration well before the six-month clock expires in October.
“When the final, shall I say, permanent ordinance comes to the board, we will again have a public hearing as we’re doing today,” Commissioner Jim McEntire said Tuesday.
The Planning Commission has held seven work sessions to study the marijuana issue, LoPiccolo said.
The nine-member advisory board has analyzed potential impacts of cannabis facilities, including odors, lighting, security and other quality-of-life issues.
Commercial forest zones along major highways with adequate infrastructure have been identified as one potential fit for grows.
Initially, Clallam County required marijuana business owners to obtain conditional-use permits from a hearing examiner but had no specific restrictions beyond state law.
More than a dozen entrepreneurs obtained conditional-use permits for indoor growing and processing operations last year.
The temporary ordinance imposed tighter restrictions, requiring a 15-acre-minimum parcel size and a 200-foot setback.
After an initial surge of interest, county planners say few applications have been filed with the Department of Community Development since the ordinance took effect.
Commissioners last fall heard impassioned public testimony from both sides of the marijuana issue.
Only one recreational marijuana retail store has opened in the unincorporated county: the Hidden Bush at 3230 E. U.S. Highway 101 just east of Port Angeles.
Two pot stores opened in the city of Port Angeles within the past week.
The state Liquor Control Board has authorized a total of six pot shops in Clallam County: two in Port Angeles, one in Sequim and three anywhere else.
Jefferson County is eligible for four retail pot shops: one in Port Townsend and three elsewhere.
Sea Change Cannabis in Discovery Bay became the region’s first marijuana retail outlet when it opened last July.
Herbal Access Retail in Port Hadlock opened last October.
State voters approved the possession and sale of up to 1 ounce of recreational marijuana for adults 21 and older by passing the 2012 initiative.
Fifty-five percent of Clallam County voters backed I-502 in that election.
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Reporter Rob Ollikainen can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 5072, or at rollikainen@peninsuladailynews.com.
