Task force discusses reducing home marijuana grows

State law allows people growing marijuana at home to have up to 36 plants, but a special task force Friday proposed reducing the number to 12.

The Marijuana Task Force in Colorado Springs made the proposal after watching a presentation from Colorado Springs police about the damage caused and safety risks created by excessive home growing operations.

“We’ve found grows that had hundreds of plants,” said Cmdr. Sean Mandel of the Vice and Narcotics Unit. “Most of the growers rent homes and the owners have no idea what’s going on.”

Mandel said the unit’s four-man regulatory team regularly receives complaints from neighbors about marijuana odor, home construction without permits and traffic to and from a particular home.

Growers often store chemicals, change ventilation and wiring, add lighting and take other measures to maximize space. Mandel said it leads to other problems — mold, mildew, insects and carbon dioxide buildup.

“It can be a major fire hazard,” said Brett Lacey, the city’s fire marshal and a member of the task force.

The task force discussed a proposed ordinance that also would give the city and police the authority to issue fines to violators, and require renters to notify owners in writing about marijuana grows.

“Currently we have a staff of four in the unit, but they have other duties along with marijuana enforcement,” Mandel said.

But task force member Charles Houghton isn’t convinced that reducing the number of individual plants in grows would resolve the situation.

“A grow facility, if it’s big enough, is like a manufacturing facility,” he said. “Unless you signed on to live next door to the factory, I don’t think it’s fair to impose that on your neighbors.”

Houghton said the task force is trying to strike a balance between respecting the public vote that legalized marijuana and responding to concerns from people who are negatively affected by the plant.

Teddi Roberts, a medical marijuana patient who attended the task force meeting, said she’s undecided about the proposed ordinance.

“I think there’s a way to enforce what we have in place, instead of always making new ordinances,” she said. “We’ve got to put some teeth behind what we have in place now.”

The task force meets again in two weeks and plans to have a draft of the proposed ordinance ready for City Council consideration in March.