Previously approved medical marijuana growers in La Plata County can now apply to convert part or all of their space to grow marijuana for recreational sales.
County commissioners voted 3-0 on Tuesday to start accepting and processing applications for licensing.
For those growers only, commissioners repealed part of a moratorium imposed last summer on accepting or processing applications for any retail/recreational marijuana businesses.
The commissioners also approved an amendment to chapter 91 of the Land Use Code to allow conversion of existing grow operations.
Todd Weaver, of the county attorney’s office, said existing medical marijuana growers will have to apply first to the state to convert some or all of their space to grow retail marijuana. Once state officials deem an application to be complete, they have seven days to refer it to the local government for licensing.
“When we receive that, we will begin processing,” Weaver said. It will be an administrative process and will not go to the county licensing authority.
“These are existing facilities,” he said. “They’ve gone through the process, background checks and so forth.”
Any space converted to grow for retail may not be converted back to medical marijuana growing later, he said. Each plant grown for retail must be registered and tracked.
With partial conversion, the space has to be declared and marked, if only by tape on the floor, Weaver said. It takes two separate licenses to grow for medical use or for retail.
Jonny Radding from Durango Organics, an existing medical marijuana business, asked about expanding cultivation space to meet additional demand.
Commissioner Bobby Lieb said that will require going through the land-use process.
County Attorney Sheryl Rogers said, “We believe if right now your space isn’t large enough, you have the right to expand the medical portion. Then you can do the one-time conversion for retail. If you convert to recreational and want to expand, that we don’t think you can do until July 1.”
Weaver clarified later that expansion of a medical marijuana cultivation space would need land-use approval as well as license modification.
The commissioners delayed a vote on the land-use code amendment last week because Commissioner Gwen Lachelt had concerns about some of the wording. On Tuesday, she said those had been addressed.
The planning staff report said wording in the resolution was changed “to emphasize that future (land-use code) amendments ... will address the permissibility of other retail marijuana facilities” and to clarify that the moratorium on other retail marijuana facilities will end on Dec. 31 this year or when the county commissioners adopt applicable code amendments, whichever happens first.
The commissioners approved the amendment unanimously.
All this comes out of state voter approval of Amendment 64 in November 2012 to allow retail production, sales and possession of marijuana for people 21 and older.
