Medical marijuana dispensaries could be banned in a Florida city if the town gets its way.
The Village of Estero says the town is too small to qualify for a medical marijuana dispensary -- according to medical marijuana advocacy groups, cities must have 67,000 residents to qualify for a dispensary, but Estero only has 31,000 year-round residents, a number well below that threshold.
This isn't the first time Estero officials have taken a stand against medical marijuana. Last year, the village of Estero adopted a one-year moratorium on cannabis dispensaries, which is still in effect until the beginning of December.
Estero officials said they put the moratorium in place to see how the state handled Amendment 2, which was overwhelmingly passed by Florida voters last year.
Amendment 2 aimed to expand medical marijuana to patients with “debilitating” illnesses, which include HIV/AIDS, epilepsy and other life-altering conditions.
On Tuesday, the Estero Planning and Zoning Board on Tuesday rejected the proposed ban, however, saying it was “too restrictive” for the small town’s neediest patients.
That means those who would need the drug would have to travel to neighboring towns and cities to get their medication, an issue board members said could be problematic.
"This is medical marijuana. We are not talking about recreational use," board member Robert King said at the meeting. "We have a number of people who gain or benefit from this medically. I don’t see why we have to force them to drive out to Bradenton to buy their medications."
Under the proposal, the city of Estero would not be allowed to approve requests for building permits for medical marijuana dispensaries in Estero.
The board will send the proposal to the Village Council, which will vote on the ordinance in December.
Expansion of the state’s medical marijuana industry has been slow since voters approved Amendment 2 last November.
Last month, health officials announced the state would be missing the deadline to issue five new licenses to growers to cultivate medical marijuana in the Sunshine State.
State health officials were supposed to distribute 10 medical marijuana licenses by Oct. 3 to new growers attempting to capitalize on the state’s fast-growing and highly competitive medical marijuana industry.
Christian Bax, the executive director of the state’s medical marijuana office, said Friday there would be a delay in issuing the licenses in part due to Hurricane Irma and a recently-filed lawsuit from a black farmer which alleges a portion of the state’s new medical marijuana law is unconstitutional.
Last month, a black farmer from Panama City filed a lawsuit against the legislation in Leon County circuit court, alleging the state’s newest law on medical marijuana is unconstitutional because it is “unfairly” narrow.
Reach reporter Allison Nielsen by email at allison@sunshinestatenews.com or follow her on Twitter: @AllisonNielsen.
