Medical pot proposals are good for region

Is the region going to pot or planting the seeds of high hopes for a boon to Pennsylvania? Businesses with names like Holistic Farms, Keystone Medical Cannabis, Bunker Botanicals and Medgarden have shown up at local town meetings seeking township support

The businesses are coming forward in a short time frame to meet the state deadlines for securing one of the 12 initial permits for grow operations.

The medical marijuana licensing process was set in motion last spring when Pennsylvania became the 24th state to legalize the dispensing of marijuana for treatment of chronic pain. The chemicals in cannabis also treat conditions such as cancer, Crohn’s disease, multiple sclerosis and glaucoma. Marijuana also is used for in treating seizures in children and providing relief from conditions that fail to respond to medicines.

Growing operations have been proposed for land in Bridgeport, the former Stanley G. Flagg factory in West Pottsgrove, and Limerick in Montgomery County as well as Aston, Delaware County. The most intriguing site is an underground bunker in Lower Pottsgrove.

Townships and boroughs have been supportive of the proposals, which come with stringent requirements and high cost to the developers.

And for patients and parents of sick children anxious for the drug to be available, the proliferation of proposals is a good sign that relief is on its way. But we suspect not everyone is happy. The stigma of marijuana has some local residents seeing themselves as neighbors to pot farms and shaking their heads in disbelief. The fact that it took Pennsylvania years to legalize a proven medical benefit for its residents shows the reluctance of many.

And those concerns are part of the controlled rollout and vetting of potential operators in this new pharma industry.

The permit process divides Pennsylvania into six regions and, like the casino licenses doled out in 2006, has limited the number of licenses for both dispensaries and grow/processing facilities in each region. With two slotted for the Southeast region, that means there are already three more applications in the eight-county Southeast region than will ultimately be approved.

Pennsylvania Health Secretary Karen Murphy expects about 900 applications statewide — from which 12 will be chosen.

In addition to only two grow facilities per region, Act 16 limits the number of dispensaries to 50 statewide, 10 of which will be located in the Southeast region.

To apply for a permit for a grow/processing facility costs $10,000, not refundable, as well as proof of $2 million capital — $500,000 of which has to be cash or on deposit in a financial institution. All applicants then pay a $200,000 application fee which is refunded if the application is rejected.

The facilities will be sophisticated and secure operations designed to make pharmaceutical-grade pills, lotions and creams — not a garden of weeds and people rolling joints and smoking.

The industry is projected to create as many as 5,000 jobs in Pennsylvania, and judging from what has happened in other states, it will generate millions of dollars in tax revenue.

In an age when the state, counties and municipalities are desperate for new sources of revenue, this is one. That’s money for schools, roads, and relief for the state budget deficit.

The proposals being brought forward in our region make use of abandoned industrial buildings and vacant land in commercial areas. Turning those sites into viable business enterprises has the potential to lower taxes for everyone and provide significantly more revenue for municipalities.

There are no reasons to reject or fear a medical marijuana facility in our towns. Other states are gaining ground in this new industry with huge potential.

To ignore or downplay these proposals would truly be reefer madness.