Boynton may hit brakes on medical marijuana

City considering 6-month dispensary moratorium

BOYNTON BEACH — Palm Beach County voters in November supported Amendment 2, authorizing the use of medical marijuana in Florida.

Those eligible who want to access it in Boynton Beach may have to wait until September.

Boynton Mayor Steven Grant recently proposed enacting a six-month moratorium on dispensaries. And city officials will discuss the proposal at Monday’s City Commission meeting.

The ban would give officials time to evaluate any potential adverse impacts on the city, “which may arise from the distribution of cannabis” at dispensaries and medical marijuana treatment centers, city documents state.

Officials can then create regulations that work well with the city, Grant said, such as legislation preventing dispensaries from popping up next to schools and churches. “Having the moratorium allows us the leeway to come up with a plan,” he said.

Commissioner Joe Casello seemed to oppose the moratorium, calling it unnecessary. “I think the people in Florida have spoken loud and clear about what they want,” he said at a City Commission meeting last month.

Palm Beach County gave final approval to a yearlong moratorium on medical marijuana dispensaries on Feb. 23, aiming to give state legislators time to craft regulations for the industry.

State legislators will begin discussing medical marijuana when their session starts March 7. The state has until July to develop regulations for medical marijuana.

Other local governments in South Florida have imposed moratoriums, including the cities of Delray Beach and Boca Raton.

Boynton officials want to make sure guidelines are already in place in the city when dis-

pensaries become legal in the state and county, Commissioner Justin Katz said.

He said he’s on the fence about the proposal, but is leaning toward not supporting the moratorium because he isn’t sure it’s necessary.

“I don’t think we’re going to see [dispensaries] come around for at least a couple of months, and I’m hopeful Boynton Beach would have enough time to develop procedures in that time,” he said.