OWENSBORO, Ky. (WEHT) — In western Kentucky, the Owensboro Metropolitan Planning Commission has recommended the approval for medical marijuana dispensaries to be introduced in Daviess County. The recommendations come as Whitesville is requesting they not be included in the list of potential locations.
Kentucky officials have given cities and counties the option to follow their own zoning regulations following the approval of a law that will legalize medical cannabis for Kentuckians in 2025.
The decision deadline is Dec. 31. The Associate Director of Planning for the OMPC says they know where they stand on the issue.
City of Island will have a wet/dry vote in November; Mayor confirms
“We’ve been working with the city of Owensboro and Daviess County Fiscal Court for several months and researching other communities and what they are doing to develop regulations for our community. [Those regulations] have been heard at this point by the planning commission and recommended for approval,” says Melissa Evans.
A town board meeting and ordinance reading held last week revealed Whitesville’s Mayor Patsy Mayfield and city commissioners disagree.
“I mean, you know, [city commissioners] just feel for right now it would be better to just opt out…[Whitesville residents] won’t have to go very far,” says Mayor Mayfield.
Whitesville residents who qualify for the medical resource will only have to travel around 15 miles to reach Owensboro city limits.
Evans says the recommended approval has been sent to the Daviess County Fiscal Court and Owensboro City Commission to be added to future meeting agendas.
Only one dispensary will be allowed in each county, and state regulations wont allow a dispensary to exist in more than one rural city. “…Stanley or Maceo, Thruston… all of those rural communities designated by the comprehensive plan land use map,” says the Associate Director of Planning.
Officials say the county’s permit approval will be determined via a state lottery. If approved, the business zoning location can’t fall within the downtown district overlay or within 1,000 feet of a school or daycare. “The city of Owensboro and Daviess County Fiscal Court have also requested that no medical cannabis businesses be located within one mile of each other,” says Evans.
She says they looked to other cities like Bowling Green and northern Kentucky for guidance on navigating the new territory. She says they followed the cities’ lead pretty closely, but decided not to add other buffers.
“For instance, you could add in a 1,000 feet from parks or churches or things like that, but Owensboro and Daviess County decided not to do that,” says Evans.
H/T: www.yahoo.com
