Olympia council extends ban on medical marijuana collectives

The Olympia City Council has unanimously approved another six-month extension of its moratorium that bans any new non-licensed medical marijuana outlets.

The city first enacted a moratorium in 2013 as the state geared up for legal recreational marijuana sales. Earlier this year, the Legislature revised the laws against collective gardens and mandated that all unlicensed medical marijuana collective storefronts must close by July 1, 2016.

Olympia’s last moratorium was approved in April and will expire in November. Another moratorium extension will be requested to cover the gap until July 1, said Chris Grabowski, city code enforcement officer.

“We’re in a changing landscape right now with regard to a lot of marijuana legislation,” Grabowski told the council Tuesday.

Olympia has two legal state-licensed recreational marijuana outlets: Green Lady Marijuana, and A Bud and Leaf. The city expects the number of state-licensed retailers will increase to meet demand that’s currently being met by 13 collective storefronts, according to a staff report.

This week, the Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board adopted emergency rules related to the alignment of the medical and recreational marijuana markets, according to a news release.

The rules allow the board to begin a “public process” for licensing new retail outlets that sell both medical and recreational marijuana, while allowing existing recreational stores to apply for a medical endorsement.

This story was originally published September 23, 2015 at 1:07 PM with the headline "Olympia council extends ban on medical marijuana collectives."