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Mapping Out Recreational Marijuana

In this June 28, 2017 photo, Alessandro Cesario, the director of cultivation, works with marijuana plants at the Desert Grown Farms cultivation facility in Las Vegas. (John Locher/AP)
In this June 28, 2017 photo, Alessandro Cesario, the director of cultivation, works with marijuana plants at the Desert Grown Farms cultivation facility in Las Vegas. (John Locher/AP)

With Jane Clayson

Recreational pot is legal in many states, now comes the battle over where it can be sold. Cities and towns want their say.

Guests:

Tony Mecia, senior writer at The Weekly Standard. His June 18th cover story is titled “Reefer Madness.” (@tonymecia)

Alyson Martin, co-founder of Cannabis Wire. Adjunct professor at Columbia Journalism School. Co-author of “A New Leaf: The End of Cannabis Prohibition.” (@alysonrmartin)

Andrew Maylor, North Andover, Massachusetts Town Manager. (@Town_Mgr_Maylor)

Kristi Knoblich Palmerco-founder and COO of Kiva Brands, one of California’s leading cannabis edible manufacturers.

From The Reading List:

The Weekly Standard: Reefer Madness” — “Colorado is the national pioneer of legalized marijuana. In 2014, it became the first state to allow any adult over 21 to buy weed or grow it without fear of prosecution. Since then, eight others and the District of Columbia have legalized the drug, and, with a momentum that feels irreversible, more are heading that direction. Public opinion is rapidly shifting in favor of legalization. Coloradans approved marijuana sales in a referendum, with state leaders musing that it would be a grand experiment and an exercise in federalism that could be instructive for the rest of the country.

Nowhere are the results of this experiment being felt more than in Pueblo, a small city of 108,000 about two hours south of Denver. Pueblo is an old working-class steel town largely left out of the prosperity of Denver and the state’s famous ski resorts. With nearly 200 legal marijuana farms, Pueblo is at the forefront of the state’s rapidly expanding pot industry. Marijuana has become big business. It is creating jobs, harnessing the energies of young entrepreneurs, raising millions in new tax revenues, attracting visitors to town, and giving residents more personal freedom.”

The New York Times: “New York Moves Toward Legal Marijuana With Health Dept. Endorsement” — “New York moved a significant step closer to legalizing recreational marijuana, as a study commissioned by Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo will recommend that the state allow adults to consume marijuana legally, the governor’s health commissioner said on Monday.

The announcement by the commissioner, Howard Zucker, signals a broad turnaround for the administration of Mr. Cuomo, a second-term Democrat who said as recently as last year that marijuana was a ‘gateway drug.’

‘We looked at the pros, we looked at the cons, and when we were done, we realized that the pros outweighed the cons,’ Dr. Zucker said, adding, ‘we have new facts.’

The findings of the report, which was initialized in January and has not been finalized, could pave the way for New York to join a roster of states that have already legalized the drug, including California, Colorado and Washington.”

Recreational marijuana is legal in some states. But now, the battle over where it can be sold. Many cities and towns want their own say. They want to limit dispensaries in their communities or ban them all together. Not near the school. Or the local high school pizza hangout. But pot shops and pot farms bring in jobs and revenue. So what’s the balance?

This hour, On Point: pot on Main Street and legal marijuana.

– Jane Clayson

Copyright 2021 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.