As voters cast their ballots on Tuesday, St. Augustine officials will review proposed regulations intended to protect the city in case Amendment 2 passes.
The statewide amendment would legalize medical marijuana for people with debilitating diseases and allow caregivers to assist patients with medical use of marijuana. The Department of Health will register and regulate centers that produce and distribute medical marijuana, and will issue ID cards to patients and caregivers.
The St. Augustine Planning and Zoning Board will meet at 2 p.m. Tuesday, and one of the last items on the agenda is a public hearing, discussion and recommendation of four ordinances updating the city’s zoning codes for medical marijuana.
The ordinances define “legally available marijuana” and provide guidelines for, among other things, the production, sale and distribution of medical marijuana.
City Attorney Isabelle Lopez asked the St. Augustine City Commission on Oct. 13 for consensus to allow officials to move forward with drafting restrictions in the city code for medical marijuana.
The point is to make the rules before the law would go into effect in January if passed. That would help the city avoid any possible property rights lawsuits.
For instance, if a property owner gained the right through Amendment 2 to use property as a medical marijuana dispensary, and the city took that right away, that would be risky legally.
“I’m not here to discuss the validity of medical marijuana,” Lopez told the commission. “We were simply trying to be responsive to your directive that we be a little more proactive in our zoning.”
The city is working to revamp its zoning codes in the face of pressure from residents. Developments such as “the castle” in Davis Shores and 7-Eleven at May Street and San Marco Avenue, which some residents are fighting, have raised concerns about the appropriateness of the city’s zoning regulations.
Lopez said local zoning regulations might be allowed to be grandfathered in if they have already been adopted before Amendment 2 would go into effect in January.
A recommendation on the ordinances from the Planning and Zoning Board should go to the City Commission on Nov. 10. If passed, a second and final reading of the ordinances would be in December.
Zoning in St. Augustine: Getting ahead of medical marijuana
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