City courts growers of medical marijuana

Columbus is rolling out the hemp carpet for medical marijuana.

Cultivators who want to be among the 24 licensed marijuana growers that the state will approve under a new law allowing for medical cannabis cannot plant their facilities in jurisdictions that enact moratoriums.

Columbus has no plans for a moratorium and already has signed off on six applicants who are trying to get state approval for cultivating

operations in the city.

The city also is working on changes to its zoning code that will set local rules for where cultivation sites and processors can be located within the city and how Columbus will regulate dispensaries. Those likely won’t be approved until the fall.

“It’s the law of the state of Ohio. Evidence supports its medical benefits,” city council President Zach Klein said. “So long as safety concerns are addressed, we should take a common-sense approach to

this new industry.”

Mayor Andrew J. Ginther has long supported medical marijuana, said his spokeswoman, Robin Davis.

Columbus plans to allow growers to build cultivation sites in manufacturing districts within the city, said Tony Celebrezze, spokesman for the city’s Department of Building and Zoning Services. But whether those sites materialize in Columbus will be up to the state. State officials have said they don’t know how many applications they expect, but they plan to issue 24 cultivation licenses.

That includes 12 large growers with up to 25,000

square feet of marijuana with the potential to double and triple that area, and 12 small growers with up to 3,000 square feet of marijuana that eventually could expand to 6,000 square feet.

Applicants for large sites must pay a $20,000 nonrefundable permit fee to the state. Those who want to grow on small sites must pay a $2,000 fee.

“These are not open-air growing facilities. These are going to be indoor, highly managed environments for these plants,” Celebrezze said.

Celebrezze said license holders will have to go through the normal building

and zoning process and obtain city permits.

The state also plans to license 60 dispensaries across the state. When the city develops its zoning codes for medical marijuana facilities, Celebrezze said, it plans to address dispensaries as well.

“When it comes to the dispensaries, there’s a lot more to consider,” Davis said. “We’re going to take a more thoughtful and deliberative approach.”

Columbus is embracing the medical marijuana business along with places like Johnstown in Licking County. But other central Ohio cities are taking steps to make sure it cannot be permitted in their jurisdictions.

Bexley, Grove City, Westerville and several other central Ohio communities already have adopted moratoriums.

Columbus officials said the business could have an economic benefit in the city.

“Whenever there’s a burgeoning new market, I think that it could have economic opportunity for all folks on the income ladder,” Klein said. “We should embrace new opportunities so long as they are safe for our community.”