Groups fight over retail marijuana’s future in Pueblo County
The fight over the future of retail marijuana has brought out a new group.
The group, Growing Pueblo’s Future, is rallying for support to keep retail pot in Pueblo County.
This comes after another group, Citizens for a Healthy Pueblo, is putting a petition together to ban all current and future recreational marijuana businesses.
Growing Pueblo’s Future had a rally at the Colorado State Fairgrounds Wednesday.
More than a hundred people showed up with a common purpose and that’s to share their stories about how retail marijuana benefited them.
Leaf on the Mesa General Manager Ieshia Jiron said recreational marijuana has helped her make a living off of it, along with others in the county.
“It’s very important. I have a staff of about 11 employees with full benefits,” she said.
The county said more than $12 million was spent on commercial buildings last year because of marijuana. The building boom gave Lou Spera’s construction company a big boost.
“I went down to a couple hundred thousand dollars a year, gross, now we’re back up to almost a million dollars a year,” he said.
Despite the group mentioning the benefits of retail pot, Citizens for a Healthy Pueblo said there are two sides to every story.
Chairman Charlene Graham said in 2014, the last time she said people could opt-out of recreational marijuana businesses, there wasn’t much concern. Two years later, she said there are concerns.
Nonprofit groups in Pueblo claim retail marijuana has brought in more homeless people, which has led to more people asking for services.
The group also said crime has been a factor as well, some examples are when the Pueblo County Sheriff’s Office busted three illegal marijuana grows in less than a month in Pueblo West.
“Shall it be at all cost that we embrace this industry, when is enough, enough,” Pueblo County Undersheriff J.R. Hall said after law enforcement officials busted an illegal marijuana grow on March 30 that had more than $7 million of pot in five homes.
“We didn’t vote on it, it was a decision by the commissioners to opt-in,” Graham said.
It’s a decision that the people will make in November, if the petition drive is successful.
Citizens for a Healthy Pueblo is still working with Pueblo County to finalize the petition.
The group will need 5,500 signatures in order for the question to go on the November ballot.
