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url: hMPp://www.yakimaherald.com/news/yhr/wednesday/1680314-8/yakima-city-council-backtracks-on-legalized-marijuana-businesses
YAKIMA, Wash. One councilwomans change of heart has the Yakima City Council suddenly looking like it will backtrack on allowing the growth, processing and sale of recreational marijuana in city limits.
Councilwoman Maureen Adkison was one of four council members in early October to defeat a proposed ban on marijuana. But toward the end of Tuesdays council meeting, Adkison announced she had reconsidered her vote and moved to ask city staff to draft legislation that would prohibit any licensed marijuana operations in the city.
I really thought long and hard about this after my last vote, Adkison said. A lot of things kept coming back to me.
Adkison said she believes legalized marijuana will make it easier for the citys youth to have access to it, although under the voter-approved law it would only be legal to sell marijuana to state residents age 21 and older.
Adkison quickly received Councilman Dave Ettls backing, and they, along with Councilmen Rick Ensey and Bill Lover, approved a motion asking staff to draft a prohibition. Council members Micah Cawley, Kathy Coffey and Sara Bristol opposed the motion, largely based on concerns that it opens the city up to litigation to establish its own exemption to the law.
Adkisons initiative Tuesday night, which wasnt included on the councils agenda, overshadowed discussion on affirmative votes to begin implementation of a downtown revitalization plan and to move approval of the citys 2014 budget forward.
Regarding the voter-approved marijuana initiative, City Attorney Jeff Cutter said he and other city attorneys are becoming increasingly confident that local jurisdictions do have authority under the law to ban marijuana businesses. Marijuana remains illegal under federal law, although the U.S. Justice Department has already provided guarantees to state officials it would not stop the implementation of the law.
Ettl said the city would only be respecting the will of Yakima voters, which largely voted down Initiative 502. He reasoned that if the state could get an exemption from the federal government, then Yakima should get its own exemption from the state, which didnt alleviate Coffeys concerns.
We may well be the poster child for that issue, Coffey said.
There were no changes of heart Tuesday night when it came to the citys pursuit of a downtown master plan.
The City Council adopted an action plan for implementing a downtown plaza and other revitalization efforts by a vote of 5 to 2, with Lover and Ensey in opposition. The measure authorizes the city manager to put together advisory committees on the proposal going forward, and makes it likely a majority of council members will approve further funding for the downtown master plan proposed in the preliminary 2014 budget.
Ensey said he supports the creation of the committees, but is hesitant to approve any additional spending on the downtown plan when he doesnt believe there is yet enough buy-in from the community on expanding Millennium Plaza. Some downtown business owners have voiced opposition to removing parking spaces at that location, while city officials say they are working on plans to add more parking elsewhere.
Were pushing forward on a proposal that business owners around the parking lot arent in favor of yet, Ensey said.
City Manager Tony ORourke said funding the design plan, as well as providing money for the committees and additional studies, is part of the process for getting community support of expanding Millennium Plaza across the adjacent parking lot.
ORourke said its important to have the support of business owners, but that the parking lot sits on public space that belongs to everyone.
Its an asset to the whole community, he said.
The plan forms an implementation committee that could include more than 24 members by the time its put together, as well as a separate committee designed to market downtown to new retail businesses.
The action plan includes a number of expenditures already slated in the preliminary 2014 budget, including $145,000 for the detailed design of a downtown plaza. The council also approved increasing preliminary funding for a retail plan to attract private investment from $25,000 to $50,000, and requested a traffic study be done in conjunction with a proposed parking study, which is expected to cost $25,000.
Other requested 2014 appropriations for projects under the action plan include $10,000 in funding for the implementation committee and retail marketing task force.
Council members discussed the preliminary 2014 budget but made no changes. Lover attempted to cut a proposed $20,000 increase in spending for the Visitors Information Center to a $10,000 increase, but that was defeated by a vote of 5 to 2, with Ensey joining Lover.
The final public hearing on the budget will be at the City Councils Dec. 3 meeting.
The council unanimously agreed on the general property tax collections for 2014. The total amount will increase by 1 percent to $17,144.984, a $169,752 increase.
ORourke and City Finance Director Cindy Epperson said most residents would actually notice a decrease in their property taxes in 2014 because of a decreased debt levy. The city is in the last year of paying off a 1995 voter-approved levy for constructing a fire station and will collect $107,230 total for that purpose, less than half of what was collected in the 2013 budget.
YAKIMA, Wash. One councilwomans change of heart has the Yakima City Council suddenly looking like it will backtrack on allowing the growth, processing and sale of recreational marijuana in city limits.
Councilwoman Maureen Adkison was one of four council members in early October to defeat a proposed ban on marijuana. But toward the end of Tuesdays council meeting, Adkison announced she had reconsidered her vote and moved to ask city staff to draft legislation that would prohibit any licensed marijuana operations in the city.
I really thought long and hard about this after my last vote, Adkison said. A lot of things kept coming back to me.
Adkison said she believes legalized marijuana will make it easier for the citys youth to have access to it, although under the voter-approved law it would only be legal to sell marijuana to state residents age 21 and older.
Adkison quickly received Councilman Dave Ettls backing, and they, along with Councilmen Rick Ensey and Bill Lover, approved a motion asking staff to draft a prohibition. Council members Micah Cawley, Kathy Coffey and Sara Bristol opposed the motion, largely based on concerns that it opens the city up to litigation to establish its own exemption to the law.
Adkisons initiative Tuesday night, which wasnt included on the councils agenda, overshadowed discussion on affirmative votes to begin implementation of a downtown revitalization plan and to move approval of the citys 2014 budget forward.
Regarding the voter-approved marijuana initiative, City Attorney Jeff Cutter said he and other city attorneys are becoming increasingly confident that local jurisdictions do have authority under the law to ban marijuana businesses. Marijuana remains illegal under federal law, although the U.S. Justice Department has already provided guarantees to state officials it would not stop the implementation of the law.
Ettl said the city would only be respecting the will of Yakima voters, which largely voted down Initiative 502. He reasoned that if the state could get an exemption from the federal government, then Yakima should get its own exemption from the state, which didnt alleviate Coffeys concerns.
We may well be the poster child for that issue, Coffey said.
There were no changes of heart Tuesday night when it came to the citys pursuit of a downtown master plan.
The City Council adopted an action plan for implementing a downtown plaza and other revitalization efforts by a vote of 5 to 2, with Lover and Ensey in opposition. The measure authorizes the city manager to put together advisory committees on the proposal going forward, and makes it likely a majority of council members will approve further funding for the downtown master plan proposed in the preliminary 2014 budget.
Ensey said he supports the creation of the committees, but is hesitant to approve any additional spending on the downtown plan when he doesnt believe there is yet enough buy-in from the community on expanding Millennium Plaza. Some downtown business owners have voiced opposition to removing parking spaces at that location, while city officials say they are working on plans to add more parking elsewhere.
Were pushing forward on a proposal that business owners around the parking lot arent in favor of yet, Ensey said.
City Manager Tony ORourke said funding the design plan, as well as providing money for the committees and additional studies, is part of the process for getting community support of expanding Millennium Plaza across the adjacent parking lot.
ORourke said its important to have the support of business owners, but that the parking lot sits on public space that belongs to everyone.
Its an asset to the whole community, he said.
The plan forms an implementation committee that could include more than 24 members by the time its put together, as well as a separate committee designed to market downtown to new retail businesses.
The action plan includes a number of expenditures already slated in the preliminary 2014 budget, including $145,000 for the detailed design of a downtown plaza. The council also approved increasing preliminary funding for a retail plan to attract private investment from $25,000 to $50,000, and requested a traffic study be done in conjunction with a proposed parking study, which is expected to cost $25,000.
Other requested 2014 appropriations for projects under the action plan include $10,000 in funding for the implementation committee and retail marketing task force.
Council members discussed the preliminary 2014 budget but made no changes. Lover attempted to cut a proposed $20,000 increase in spending for the Visitors Information Center to a $10,000 increase, but that was defeated by a vote of 5 to 2, with Ensey joining Lover.
The final public hearing on the budget will be at the City Councils Dec. 3 meeting.
The council unanimously agreed on the general property tax collections for 2014. The total amount will increase by 1 percent to $17,144.984, a $169,752 increase.
ORourke and City Finance Director Cindy Epperson said most residents would actually notice a decrease in their property taxes in 2014 because of a decreased debt levy. The city is in the last year of paying off a 1995 voter-approved levy for constructing a fire station and will collect $107,230 total for that purpose, less than half of what was collected in the 2013 budget.
