Seven dispensaries to close by July 1

LONGMONT – Longmont’s seven medical marijuana dispensaries have until July 1 to close, after the Longmont City Council voted unanimously Tuesday to ban them.

Tuesday night’s vote also banned other marijuana-related businesses, including growing operations and manufacturers such as companies that bake marijuana-infused items.

After July 1, dispensaries in Longmont would face enforcement action from the city’s code enforcement department and the police.

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July 1 also is the date that the state’s new licensing requirements kick in for existing dispensaries.

Medical marijuana is allowed in Colorado under a constitutional amendment approved by voters in 2000. Dispensaries proliferated across the state in recent years after federal pronouncements that medical marijuana law decided by states should not be prosecuted.

Owners of clinics in Longmont opposed the measure when it was introduced. In February, Colorado Patients First co-owner Henri Morin said the city would get a fight from owners if it tries to close down existing medical marijuana dispensaries. Morin was not immediately available for comment on Wednesday.

In general, medical marijuana dispensaries are allowed in general industrial zoning areas in Boulder County, said Ben Ortiz, a Longmont city planner. Most of Longmont is surrounded by agriculturally zoned property, and dispensaries aren’t allowed there under county rules, he said.

Sales tax revenue from the dispensaries was $16,265 in the first quarter of 2011, compared to $19,932 in the first quarter of 2010, said Ezequiel Vasquez, Longmont’s revenue manager. That amount was less than 1 percent of the total sales tax revenue collected for the first quarter, which was about $9 million, Vasquez said.