City Council votes against new marijuana businesses

In recent news, the city of Colorado Springs, Colorado is planning to drastically change its measures regarding marijuana businesses within the community. City Council has approved two different moratorium ordinances which will change the cities industry as we know it. The first ordinance states that no new cannabis clubs can be open before March 22, 2016. All clubs already open to the public will be grandfathered in. The second ordinance states that there will not be any more permits issued for medical marijuana dispensaries in Colorado Springs. This also means that already existing medical marijuana facilities do not have the option to expand or grow any larger.

During discussion, Keith King, District 3, amended the ordinance, removing the council's ability to extend this moratorium; only Collins voted against. King also attempted to amend the ordinance to 1) allow existing businesses to move or expand and 2) only affect businesses within certain zones. According to city planning and development director Peter Wysocki, the second item — amending the ordinance to only affect businesses within certain zones — would have to be approved by the planning commission. He agreed to cut that part, but the amendment was still voted down 6 to 3, with King, Murray and Strand voting in favor.