Liquor Control Board to hold public hearing on revised rules for recreational marijuana businesses

The state Liquor Control Board will hold a public hearing tonight from 6 to 8 p.m. to discuss its recent revisions to rules governing recreational marijuana businesses. The meeting will take place at Seattle City Hall‘s Bertha Knight Landes Room, at 600 4th Avenue.

The revised rules were released Sept. 4 and address issues with the original draft. The new version limits the amount of marijuana produced and details how many retailers will

Map showing potential pot shop locations in yellow, including area around the 23rd and Union intersection in the Central District.

be allowed across the state. This includes 334 proposed retail locations in Washington, with 21 slated for Seattle.

According to the I-502 website, “These rules reflect the Board’s stated goal of developing a tightly regulated and controlled market, and also demonstrate the agency’s initial thinking on how best to achieve that market. The Board is concerned with out-of-state diversion of product, traceability of products, responsible business practices, youth access and other public and consumer safety issues.”

As we’ve discussed on Central District News, the Board’s location restrictions limit retail shops to only a handful of areas in the city. Potential locations, per these rules, include the area around 23rd and Union, which has Central District neighbors raising both concerns and cheers at the possibility of pot shops here. The Board has made no decisions about whether they’ll allow clustering shop locations or make efforts to deliberately disperse them.

We’ll continue to cover the story as rules develop and we move closer to the reality of pot shops in Washington.

9 thoughts on “Liquor Control Board to hold public hearing on revised rules for recreational marijuana businesses

  1. A nearby neighbor send me this point today:
    “I don’t think the 1000ft rule is being applied appropriately, especially when you consider all of the activities serving youth near that corner including: Meter Music, Seattle Kajukenbo and Kung Fu Kids, Friends of the Children (?), Umojafest, Central Cinema. “.
    Megan, the majority of citizens living in the neighborhood are in opposition to this zoning, including the Africatown folks, citing concerns about the message it gives to youth and their families, as well as to the rest of the city.

    • Cheeda1, please provide a link to your qualified data indicating the opinions of the “majority of citizens” living in the neighborhood. I suspect a scientific poll of the citizens is lacking.

      I agree that there needs to be public discourse and will try to be in attendance this evening.

      The regulations are going to have more benefit in competing with those of your neighbors already selling illegal narcotics to both the children and adults reducing the profitability in illegal dealing and hopefully reducing some of the gang activity as a side effect.

      Does the liquor store that’s existed at that intersection for years give a message to the youth and families that alcohol abuse is acceptable? How many dealers of alcohol do you have selling their product in your alley or from the park?

      • I am (volunteer) Chair of EastPAC and have heard from neighbors involved with the Africatown efforts as well as others raising families there. I will not disclose their emails for the sake of confidentiality.
        By your comment, you must think this is my personal agenda and I’m making this up. Ha! Crazy assumption, that I would spend all of this time getting this information out…I’m more progressive and non-conformist that you likely are. I’m the messenger here.
        I try to represent the citizens I serve, and have not yet concluded my own opinion, EXCEPT for the fact that the CD is inequitably targeted for facilities that others do not want.
        Yes, I agree that the liquor store does give a negative message to the youth. It’s already there. We, as citizens, would have a very difficult time undoing it.
        Keep in mind that with the taxes and surcharges being levied on legal marijuana, it will likely cost double what it costs on the street. Don’t fool yourself, patrons of pot shops will likely be financially comfortable with disposable incomes. (Don’t ya think?)
        As a volunteer, I do not have the time to conduct fair and non-duplicative surveys. I do, however, have a great idea that would help our community immensely, particularly with your knowledge! (Folks, this is where I lose most people, they complain and when asked to be part of the solution, they disappear)
        Will you volunteer to develop a scientific poll that can provide us with “qualified data” , with controls to eliminate duplicative votes and not targeted to only a select few?
        Then can you aggregate the data for evaluation? Thanks in advance for you support!

    • Well count me as opposed and in support of those who do not feel it is appropriate at that location. Right law wrong location.

  2. You know what the Central District needs? A 80’s style arcade. We could open it up right there on 27th. It would be a safe location for kids of all ages to go and hang out.

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  4. Thank the City Council for cherry picking and coloring all those blue areas in to create only a few places where the 21 potential operations will cluster. That is truly the most upsetting. I do not understand why Columbia City wouldn’t also be a good place. In addition, does the presence of a pot store then trump any effort to get land for a park or trump any efforts by another business to open an arcade? Does the presence of a liqour store already place constraints on the same?

  5. Great question, KT! I have been wondering the same but hadn’t yet put it into a coherent post. I suppose one also could not open a day care or any of the other prohibited co-existers. I hope everyone is thinking this through!