Downs accepted medical marijuana into their community in 2014. (flcikr Brett Levin)
By Terry James
SPRINGFIELD – The final rules for allowing medical marijuana were approved this year in Illinois.
The rules were approved this summer. The original plan was to have medical marijuana available for sale in the fall, but choosing sites for the cultivation centers took longer than expected. State Rep. Lou Lang is the sponsor of the original medical marijuana bill. Lang says Spring 2015 is a more realistic goal as it will take time to grow the pot.
"Perhaps I pushed it a little, but I think I have to applaud the state agencies who worked on these rules because they may have sacrificed doing it faster for doing it better."
The next step was to find a place to grow the pot.
In early November The Village of Downs board approved rezoning an area on the town's southside to allow for a possible medical marijuana growth site. Tim Jones had his proposal for this type of site rejected by the McLean County Board, but Downs has given the project new life. Downs Mayor Mike James says the town is always looking for new businesses.
"This was one that approached us and we thought it was going to happen in Illinois so why not it Downs?," asked James. "It's a great injection of jobs into our community. It's a great source of tax revenue for our community."
The 160 acre piece of land was already zoned mixed use, but the town rezoned it agricultural to make sure there would not be any questions at the state level. Jones is one of several to apply for a pot farm in this State Police district – the state will only allow one per district.
After people started the conversation about using medical marijuana with their doctors, registration started later in the year.
By December 3rd, Illinois Department of Public Health spokeswoman Melaney Arnold said about 11,000 people started the process online and 1,600 have submitted at least some paperwork. The department had approved approximately 600 patient applications. Mayor Mike James says the project could bring a lot of benefits.
"It's a good source of tax revenue for our community and a good source of partnership with what's being required by the state to give back to the areas where these cultivation centers are licensed," said James.
The $10 million facility would bring in 61 jobs, along with 50 construction jobs while it's being built.
Terry James can be reached at [email protected].
