MILTON — While the city of Milton is not zoned for medical marijuana dispensaries, that could change.
Next week, the Milton City Council has scheduled the first reading of a proposed medical cannabis moratorium.
“Moratorium is a way of saying … we don’t have an area in our current code (of ordinances) that clearly defines what we would consider to be a medical marijuana dispensary,” Planning Director Randy Jorgenson said. “We don’t have an area within our code, which clearly indicates whether they should or should not be allowed in any of the zoning districts within the city.”
Jorgenson said the moratorium would allow city staffers time to decide if and how dispensaries are placed into the city’s code, along with where they would be placed and how they would operate.
While it could be awhile before Milton sees legal medical marijuana dispensaries opening, Jorgenson said a Nov. 8 ballot item, Florida Right to Medical Marijuana Initiative, Amendment 2, raises concern.
The initiative, which would broaden medical marijuana use, has received resistance. One example is in the ‘Vote No on 2’ campaign, which suggests the proposed amendment is a “guise to legalize pot smoking in Florida,” according to its website, voteno2.org.
The Compassionate Medical Cannabis Act of 2014, enacted by Florida Legislature, allows low-THC medical marijuana to patients who qualify.
Under this act, medical marijuana use is restrictive, according to Jorgenson.
“(The use of medical marijuana) is allowed for very few patients, prescribed by very few doctors and dispensed in very few locations,” he said.
The type of low-THC marijuana legally permitted to use in Florida allows the user comfort when dealing with a serious ailment; it’s not for hallucinogenic reasons.
“Many of the ingredients … in pot that create the euphoric feeling that the recreational user is looking for aren’t found,” he said. “It’s a drug, just like a drug store puts out.”
While Jorgenson said his staff will work to provide answers, the council will one day have to consider such dispensaries.
“We have to make sure that the people who are making the decisions understand that it’s not ‘Hey, they are going let people sell pot’,” he said. “It’s very regulated for a true medical need. It provides some medical relief to people who have incurable conditions.
“They also need to know that the audience of potential users could very well expand come November.”
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This article originally appeared on Santa Rosa Press Gazette: Milton council to discuss medical cannabis moratorium