PORTALES — After plenty of haggling and some striking of clauses, the Roosevelt County Commission approved its ordinance dealing with cannabis manufacturing, sale and consumption.
The ordinance, approved during a two-hour meeting Tuesday, only covers the unincorporated parts of the county. Any cannabis manufacture, sale and consumption within Portales city limits falls to the Portales City Council and the ordinance it will discuss in its Aug. 24 meeting.
The News covered the meeting virtually.
According to the ordinance:
• No cannabis establishment, cannabis consumption area, or cannabis courier may be located within 300 feet of a school or daycare center in existence at the time it sought a license.
• Cannabis retailers and cannabis consumption areas may not be located within 200 feet of another cannabis retailer or cannabis consumption area.
• Cannabis products may only be served and consumed in cannabis consumption areas, and cannabis retailers may only sell products for off-site consumption, 7 a.m.-midnight Monday through Saturday and noon to midnight Sunday.
• A permit is required, with a cost of $250 for the first year and $100 for annual renewal.
The commission struck sections referencing the odor associated with cannabis production. Commissioner Shane Lee said that felt like too much governmental control. He doesn’t believe it’s his job to say what is and isn’t a good smell and that people should be able to use their land as they see fit. He recalled people at one time being against wind turbines because they just didn’t want to see or hear them.
“I think we need to be more neighborly,” Lee said, “instead of telling our neighbors what to do.”
The commission also struck a proposed requirement that “a cannabis establishment must maintain a minimum separation distance of 1,000 feet from any residence, religious assembly or church, library, cultural center, community center, public park, or government facility.” Commission Chairman Tina Dixon feared a landowner could object to a cannabis establishment on their neighbor’s property, no matter where it is located on the property, because their overall properties are only a few feet apart.
