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May 23, 2014 Arapahoe County, Colorado | Volume 13, Issue 26 A publication of
centennialcitizen.net
Council opposes county’s pot plan
WALKING WITH A PURPOSE
Proposal would allow personal growing in unincorporated commercial areas of Arapahoe By Jennifer Smith
jsmith@coloradocommunitymedia.com
Some participants in the NAMI Walk on May 17 at Centennial Center Park brought the little ones along for a stroll. About 1,000 people walked for a cause at Centennial Center Park on May 17. The 2014 Colorado NAMI Walk raised more than $150,000 to help raise awareness and fight stigma about mental illness. The National Alliance on Mental Illness holds similar events throughout the country. The purpose of the walk is to show “you are not alone in dealing with mental illness,” said NAMI Colorado executive director Scott Glaser. The walking course of roughly a mile was traversed by men, women, children and dogs, and some opted to go around more than once on the sunny, 70-degree morning.
PHOTOS BY CHRIS ROTAR LEFT: As May 17 was also Armed Forces Day, members of the military were recognized for their service prior to the start of the walk. RIGHT: In addition, or in place of kids, many participants in the NAMI Walk brought their dogs along for a little exercise.
Class 5A baseball’s final four all set Staff report As the only unbeaten team thus far in the Class 5A double elimination tournament, Rocky Mountain is assured of still being in state title contention May 24 even if they stumble May 23 against Cherry Creek. Creek will face the Lobos in a noon elimination game for the Bruins May 23 at All-City Stadium. Mountain Vista and Regis Jesuit, meanwhile, will clash in another elimination contest at 2:30 p.m. May 23 at All-City. The Bruins left 12 runners on base in an 8-4 loss to Chatfield May 16 but rebounded with a 6-3 victory over Chaparral and a 7-6 conquest of ThunderRidge May 17 to advance to the Final Four. Grant Farrell went 7-for-
11 in the three games to pace Creek. Vista got four-hit pitching performances from Will Dixon and Nick Leonard in 4-0 and 7-1 wins over Chaparral and Chatfield, respectively. However, the Golden Eagles surrendered eight runs in the top of the seventh in a May 17 game against Rocky Mountain and dropped a 17-7 decision. Defending Class 5A state champions ThunderRidge couldn’t revive the playoff magic it displayed last year despite a late flurry in its first outing. The Grizzlies scored eight runs in the top of the eighth inning May 16 in a 10-2 win over Fairview but then lost 5-4 to Rocky Mountain later in the day and were eliminated, 7-6, by Creek on May 17. Chaparral collected a total of eight hits in its losses to
Cherry Creek’s Jack Gillett safely makes it back to first base before the ball gets to ThunderRidge first baseman AJ Jones on May 16 at All-City Field. Photo by Paul DiSalvo Mountain Vista and Creek. In the Class 4A double elimination tournament, Valor Christian was ousted after a 4-2 setback to Wheat Ridge and a 9-8 loss to Longmont May 17.
Lutheran defeated Center 11-6 in the Class 2A single elimination tournament in Pueblo May 17 but was eliminated later after a narrow 3-2 defeat to Sedgwick County.
Centennial City Council is not only surprised by a proposed amendment to the Arapahoe County marijuana code, it has unanimously passed a resolution against it. “I really have a strong feeling against one government telling another government what to do, but in this case, I’m willing to make an exception,” said Councilmember Vorry Moon during a May 12 study session. During that meeting, the council directed staff to craft the resolution, which outlines its opposition to a proposal making its way through the review process in Arapahoe County. It would allow commercial property owners in unincorporated agricultural areas to lease indoor space to people who could use it to grow marijuana for medicinal purposes for personal consumption. “The intent is to get marijuana growing out of urban areas and into a more suitable environment,” Ron Carl, Arapahoe County attorney, said on May 20. It places no limits on how many people could rent space, and councilmembers envision a sort of community garden for pot. “It’s like a doggie day care for your pot plants,” said Mayor Cathy Noon. “Somebody is always one step ahead of whatever regulation you have.” Carl said he doesn’t envision that type of business model, and stresses that each application would have to be approved by the county commissioners. The resolution passed by council during its May 19 meeting, has no legal sway, it is simply the strongest opposition council can voice. “Basically what I think this says is, `You guys ought to be ashamed of yourselves,’ ” said Councilmember Doris Truhlar. “Generally you don’t want to meddle in other governments, but this is crappy. This is in our back yard.” Andy Firestine, deputy director of the city’s community-development department, says such establishments could arise in the Dove Valley area, creating a potential land-use conflict should annexation into Centennial ever be a possibility. He also notes that because the pot would be for personal use, there are no state regulations on its production. Carl said he can’t imagine the commissioners approving a plan that would create problems for a neighborhood, and noted the amendment prohibits the use within 1,000 feet of residential areas, schools, parks and churches. It also specifically bans marijuana clubs, where people might congregate to partake, which the county’s ban did not specifically do before. The county’s planning board was slated to hear about the proposal at its May 20 study session. Its public hearing is set for June 3, then the commissioners will hold theirs on June 24.
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