West Bloomfield Officials Extend Medical Marijuana Moratorium

Along with other communities in Michigan, West Bloomfield Township officials have wrestled with the state's voter-approved Medical Marihuana Act. 

On Monday, trustees extended a moratorium on medical marijuana facilities, with the clear intention of moving forward with an ordinance to ban them. They first enacted a moratorium in 2011 and extended it for a year in August of 2012. 

Township attorney Nancy Cooper Green said the moratorium was in place because the law around the Act "has been unsettled, and it continues to be unsettled." At issue is the inconsistency between state law, which allows the use of marijuana for treating certain illnesses, and federal law, which classifies it as an illegal substance. 

"We're three years down the road, maybe it is time that this community takes a stance and says we don't want it," trustee Larry Brown said. 

Green said drafting an ordinance would take about four months and recommended extending the moratorium, which could be amended when the ordinance is finalized. 

Officials noted any new rules would not interfere with caregivers, who are allowed to supply marijuana for up to five patients.