Ann Arbor Delays Medical Marijuana Law

At its Nov. 15, 2010 meeting, the Ann Arbor city council postponed to its Dec. 20 meeting a change to its zoning ordinances that would regulate medical marijuana dispensaries. The council also extended a moratorium on the use of facilities for dispensing or cultivating marijuana for 60 days – until Jan. 31, 2011. The decision to postpone came after a public hearing on the zoning regulations, which will now be held open until Dec. 20. The new zoning was previously given initial approval by the council at its Oct. 18, 2010 meeting.

Among other restrictions, the proposed zoning regulations include a provision that medical marijuana dispensaries can only be located in zoning districts classified as D (downtown), C (business), or M (industrial), or in PUD districts where retail is permitted in the supplemental regulations. Also, medical marijuana cultivation facilities would only be located in C (business), M (industrial), RE (research), or ORL (office/research) districts.

The council is also planning to consider initial approval of a requirement at its Dec. 6 meeting that medical marijuana dispensaries be subject to licensing requirements. The licensing requirements would then come before the council at its Dec. 20 meeting for final approval – at the same time the medical marijuana zoning is considered for final approval.

This brief was filed from city council chambers. A more detailed report of the meeting will follow: [link]