Pubdate: Fri, 03 Jan 2014
Source: Daily Sentinel, The (Grand Junction, CO)
Copyright: 2014 Jerome Santiago
Contact:  http://www.gjsentinel.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/2084
Author: Jerome Santiago
Note: Title by newshawk.

MEXICAN BRICK WEED

As the Jan. 1 milestone (no pun intended) is upon the state of
Colorado, and people throughout many parts of the state will be able
to stroll into a retail marijuana pot shop and support local business,
that will not be the case here in Grand Junction.

Apparently, the City Council prefers all the thousands of Grand
Junction residents who use marijuana to make their purchases of
Mexican cartel brick weed from some shady individual in some back
alley, or buy it from the guy who gets it from this other guy who
grows weed illegally in the national forest. The paranoid,
not-in-my-backyard ethos that seems to run rampant in the City Council
needs to be fought with common sense and, more importantly, tax
revenue and increased job growth.

Various jobs sectors, including construction and advertising, would
have seen temporary or permanent growth in Grand Junction had the city
councilors not continued to set their watches back 50 years.

If there were just five shops in Grand Junction, they would all have
needed to undergone intensive infrastructural upgrades to meet
inspection standards and be able to grow, process and sell legal marijuana.

As for myself, I don't partake, but I did just move here from Denver
and witnessed four years of explosive growth in the industry. The
Denver Post is full of articles covering this period of time that cite
the growth in marijuana industry as having saved several metro
warehouse districts, as well as giving a much-needed boost to the
construction industry.

Not to mention some much-needed sales tax and permit fees that could
be used for alcohol and drug enforcement, education, schools, etc. Tax
coffers are coming up lighter as more shoppers find bargains online,
and marijuana is one thing Amazon will not sell.

Oh well, what matters most is that the City Council continue to hold
onto the notion that Grand Junction is sober, small-town America circa
1955 and we can all go down to the sock hop and get a milkshake.

JEROME SANTIAGO

Grand Junction 
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MAP posted-by: Jo-D