When Colorado became the first state to legalize the sale of recreational marijuana in 2012 (with some exceptions), the City of Colorado Springs opted out, and today the sale of recreational marijuana within the city’s jurisdictions is still banned.
Rocky Mountain PBS dives into the two ballot measures….
Ballot Question 300
Ballot Question 2D
Read the article
Based on unofficial election results, it appears that Question 2D has failed, though only by a slim margin after weeks of ballot counting, making it one of the most closely-watched races in the Colorado Springs election this year. Voters approved Ballot Question 300.
So does that mean recreational marijuana sales are legal in Colorado Springs? It’s a bit more complicated than that.
Currently, recreational marijuana sales are not allowed in Colorado Springs. However, with the passing of Ballot Question 300, which was approved by more than 20,000 votes, about 90 existing medical marijuana shops in the city would be able to apply for recreational marijuana licenses.
Ballot Question 300 will not necessarily create new recreational marijuana shops, though, because it only applies to businesses with a license to sell medical marijuana. If their applications are approved, the businesses will receive dual medical and recreational licenses.
Ballot Question 300 preserves an existing Colorado Springs rule that no shops will be able to sell recreational or medicinal marijuana within a 1,000-foot radius of schools or child-care facilities.
Ballot Question 2D, on the other hand, would have amended the Charter of the City of Colorado Springs, a document that defines how a city is governed. 2D specifically would have added a new Section 130 to Article XV, thereby prohibiting retail marijuana establishments within the city.
Charters trump city ordinances, and make it significantly more difficult to adjust than local ordinances and require more extensive voter approval processes.
Ballot Question 300’s future is further complicated by a September Colorado Springs City Council vote that approved a strict zoning ordinance banning recreational sales within a one-mile radius of schools, daycare facilities and drug and alcohol treatment centers, making it almost impossible to start a cannabis business, according to some critics.
Now it gets even more complicated read on at
