The Ypsilanti Township Planning Commission will consider a proposed medical marijuana facility a Detroit-based company wants to open just off Whittaker Road. The Planning Commission meets at 5:30 p.m. today at the Ypsilanti Township Hall, 7200 S. Huron River Drive. A hearing on a requested special use permit that would allow Stellas Place LLC to build the dispensary at 435 Joe Hall Drive was scheduled for the Commission’s July 23 meeting, but the owners never showed up. The parent company of Stellas Place is Detroit-based Michigan Wellness Group. Township Planning Coordinator Joe Lawson previously said that the public hearing wasnt published in a newspaper of record on time so a vote couldnt happen, but officials still expected the owners to go to the hearing to help answer a number of questions about the operation. The company is proposing the dispensary in a light industrial zone, but Eastern Michigan Universitys Foundation Office, located at 1349 S. Huron St., is within 1,000 feet of the site. The townships ordinance regarding medical marijuana facilities states they cannot be located within 1,000 feet of schools, churches, child care organizations, libraries, universities or residential uses or districts, and a special use permit would be required. Lawson wrote in his recommendation to the commission that he checked the companys website and has several concerns about what services the Michigan Wellness Group offers, including patient to patient transactions, which he said are illegal under the Michigan Medical Marijuana Act per a recent Michigan Supreme Court ruling. The company also offers edible medical marijuana products, which Lawson wrote are not covered by the MMMA, according to previous case law. Lawson also wrote that it appears the group is not aware of the townships zoning ordinances regarding patient/caregiver relationships. Caregivers can only grow up to 12 plants for themselves and five registered patients, and Lawson previously said it appears the company allows more than the limited transactions. This applicant may not be clear as to the intent and/or regulations set forth in our local ordinance as they relate to the patient/caregiver relationship and further that patient to patient sales or transfer has been deemed illegal under the MMMA by the State Supreme Court, Lawson wrote in the recommendation. There appears to be far too many questions to be answered at this time in relation to the proposed operation of the facility for staff to make a positive recommendation in relation to this application.
Posted on: Mon, 01 Sep 2014 12:39:51 +0000
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