PORT TOWNSEND — Jefferson County commissioners expect to get an earful on two alternatives for an extension of a moratorium on recreational marijuana businesses during a public hearing today.
“I expect that we will get a lot of comments that will go across the board about the marijuana business,” said District 3 Commissioner Kathleen Kler.
“There may also be a lot of people who will make comments outside the focus of the hearing about issues that we are not addressing.”
The meeting will begin at 6 p.m. in the Cotton Building, 607 Water St.
Commissioners are scheduled to incorporate public comment into deliberation of the issue at a meeting at 10 a.m. Feb. 2 in chambers at the Jefferson County Courthouse, 1820 Jefferson St.
At the February meeting, commissioners are expected to select one of three available options: to extend the moratorium, amend it to exempt larger parcels or allow it to expire.
While scheduling today’s meeting back on Jan. 12, county commissioners decided to accommodate larger crowds and full-time work schedules by providing a larger venue and holding the meeting in the evening — the latter at the suggestion of District 1 Commissioner Phil Johnson.
Soon after the approval of Initiative 502 in November 2012, the county designated marijuana as a standard agricultural project but changed that position after a series of public protests.
The moratorium went into effect Aug. 11, 2014 and is set to expire Feb. 11, with the possibility of its extension to June 11.
Two options are mainly under consideration: to extend the original moratorium or put in place an amended version that exempts parcels larger than 5 acres.
The first alternative would extend the moratorium as it now exists.
In the second option, parcels larger than five acres that are zoned rural residential would be exempt from the moratorium.
The commissioners also can allow expiration of the moratorium, though there is no board support for that option.
Several marijuana grow operations have purchased land and equipment in anticipation of a new opportunity but have had to put their businesses on hold due to the moratorium.
One grower, Jean Ball of Gnarley Dog Farms in Chimacum, told commissioners Jan. 5 that if the moratorium is extended, she will lose the opportunity to grow a full crop in 2015 and that its existence harmed her business.
Kler, who took office Jan. 2, said she has immersed herself in the topic by speaking with people on both sides of the issue, visiting a grow operation and discussing the matter with other county officials and those from other jurisdictions.
“I’ve talked this over with commissioners from other counties, and there is no place in the state that has the level of citizen participation that we have in Jefferson County,” she said.
“It’s good news that we have such a high level of involvement but also shows there is a great misunderstanding as to what public comment can and cannot do when there is a law.”
Kler said that incorporating legal marijuana into Jefferson County “has caused a lot of confusion and fear,” much of which centers around the effects of a legal marijuana business situated close to where children congregate.
“If it were just about land use, it would be easy,” she said.
“The fear and the public safety part is coloring and layering the conversation, as there is a difference of opinion as to what degree of safety is involved in what is now a legitimate business operation.
Kler said that support and opposition for marijuana business haven’t originated from the expected places and that many people who use the drug and supported the initiative were surprised by its potential impact on neighborhoods.
Kler said that generally, older citizens are opposed to extending the moratorium while younger people with families are in favor.
Kler said that the attention given to marijuana and the moratorium is “absolutely disproportionate” and has taken away from other priorities.
“I will look forward to addressing other issues in the county when we have this settled,” she said.
Anyone attending the meeting can submit verbal or written testimony on the issue.
Efforts to reach Johnson and District 2 Commissioner David Sullivan on Sunday were unsuccessful.
________
Jefferson County Editor Charlie Bermant can be reached at 360-385-2335 or cbermant@peninsuladailynews.com.
