PORT ANGELES — Clallam County will ask voters to weigh in on a proposed law that would regulate the recreational marijuana industry in unincorporated areas.
The three commissioners asked County Administrator Jim Jones to develop wording for a proposal on the Nov. 3 general election ballot. They did not vote and did not say when they would consider the proposal to put it before voters.
The county Planning Commission reached an impasse May 20 on the recommended approval of a draft ordinance to the three commissioners.
Needing five votes, the panel voted 4-3 to recommend approval, then voted 6-1 to kick the draft to the board without a recommendation.
“I think we’ve got a pretty good ordinance,” Clallam County Principal Planner Kevin LoPiccolo told commissioners Monday.
“It’s very predictable. All uses are allowed by right of zone.”
The new proposal — and an interim ordinance on the books now — restricts the marijuana industry from most rural neighborhoods.
Since commissioners approved the stopgap ordinance last October, the nine-member Planning Commission has held about a dozen work sessions to develop permanent zoning regulations for the marijuana industry.
“Basically, it was the Planning Commission that came up with this ordinance,” LoPiccolo said.
“We went through each of the zoning districts, went through all of the purposes. At the end, the Planning Commission identified numerous zones that could accommodate not only the producing but the processing as well as the retail component.”
Eleven zones were identified for growing and processing, including commercial forest, rural commercial, urban commercial and industrial.
Fifty-five percent of Clallam County voters supported the 2012 state initiative to legalize the growing, processing and sale of up to 1 ounce of marijuana to adults 21 and older.
Commissioners have struggled to come up with county-specific regulations for the new industry.
‘Refer’ to voters
“I’m not going to speak for the voters on this one,” Commissioner Mike Chapman said in the work session.
“I for one would say we’ll refer that to the voters.”
Community Development Director Mary Ellen Winborn, who campaigned on the marijuana issue last year, said the new proposal provides predictability for the industry and peace of mind for concerned citizens.
“I believe the Planning Commission has created an excellent ordinance,” said Winborn, who told voters she would be tougher on marijuana than her predecessor, Sheila Roark Miller.
“It’s not perfect, but what the process has taught us is that we have some impassioned people in our county that love our county and care about our county and recognize that we need industry and jobs and want to provide them, but it cannot be at the expense of others.”
Funneling marijuana grow-ops and retail shops to commercial and industrial zones “is gentrifying real estate that has been vacant in disrepair for years,” Winborn said.
“I have no doubt that when this ordinance is passed, people will have more predictability, they’ll know where the line is and they will know where the edge is, and we will see the industry flourish and we will see peace in our rural residential areas,” she said.
Later in the work session, Chapman said county voters would likely support the staff proposal because they supported Winborn in her campaign.
“What would we be afraid of?” Chapman asked.
“I don’t understand this fear of the voter and trying to read their minds. I’m not a mind reader, and I don’t think they want their minds read. I think they want to be consulted.”
“I think the voters would appreciate an opportunity to weigh in on how they want this regulated,” Chapman added. “They did want it in this county. They did want it legalized.”
Ag retention zone
Commissioner Jim McEntire questioned why the agriculture retention zone was not included on the list of approved zones for growing and processing.
A Sequim-area resident asked the board last fall to consider allowing marijuana grow-ops on large farms to support farms.
“I have trouble with prohibiting that, prohibiting them from making income off of this particular crop that’s grown and produced as opposed to any other crop or livestock that’s grown and produced,” McEntire said.
“I think we do our citizens a disservice by not having some sort of regulatory framework developed, but I want it to be as right as we can get it. And with ag not treated in this, I think we’re missing something here.”
Winborn said her office had received no applications for marijuana businesses on agricultural lands since the interim ordinance was passed.
LoPiccolo said the new proposal strikes a balance between the interests of rural neighborhoods and industry proponents who “seemed as though the regulatory framework that was being created was satisfactory.”
“Certainly the neighboring groups that were coming in from the residential areas were very supportive of it because it took it out of the rural zones, and it kind of put it on the periphery of the zones and the commercial and industrial areas,” LoPiccolo said.
“So it appeared as though that both parties were satisfied.”
________
Reporter Rob Ollikainen can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 5072, or at rollikainen@peninsuladailynews.com.
