Petition filed to ban retail marijuana in Pueblo County
A petition has been filed to ban all retail marijuana shops and close all existing shops in Pueblo County.
The two names listed on the petition are a Pueblo attorney and the owner of a Pueblo tree company.
Calls to the men were not returned.
Instead, they referred all calls to a recording that said “Citizens For A Healthy Pueblo” will hold a news conference in the coming days.
The petition was submitted Thursday to the County Clerk’s office and is currently being reviewed.
The County Clerk has five days to review it.
If the petition is approved and the group collects enough signatures from registered voters, the question would appear as a ballot measure in November.
The clerk has five days to review and return the petition. The petitioners would then have to get thousands of signatures for it to appear on the November ballot.
Despite the statewide vote in 2012, Pueblo County Undersheriff J.R. Hall says Sheriff Kirk Taylor has always said the local voters need to have the final decision on topics like this.
“The citizens need a voice in this and that other people can not take it as a mandate to have this type of a system here,” said Hall.
Also on the November ballot, the city of Pueblo has a question that would allow pot shops in the city.
Owners of recreational marijuana shops are expected to meet Monday to discuss several topics, including the pending petition drive and how to educate the community on the positive impact of the retail industry in Pueblo County.
