BY DANI TIETZ
dani@mahometnews.com

The Village of Mahomet will review an ordinance to prohibit the sale of recreational cannabis within Village limits Tuesday night (Dec. 10).

On Nov. 12, the Village placed the discussion on the agenda a second time in order to hear feedback from the community. The Village placed the issue on the board docket in October, but only one constituent showed up to offer an opinion.

The November discussion captured mixed opinions from roughly two dozen people. After listening, the board decided to direct staff to write an ordinance to prohibit the sale of recreational marijuana within Village limits.

By state law, the use of recreational marijuana will be legal beginning Jan. 1, 2020. Laws regarding the use of medical marijuana will also stay in place. The law also states that registered patients in the medical cannabis pilot program may possess more than 30 grams of cannabis if it is grown and secured in their residence under certain conditions.

To begin the meeting, Village staff outlined where recreational marijuana establishments could be located, if they wanted to advertise their product. Having to be 1,000 feet away from a school, daycare, library or park, space was limited.

Mahomet resident Joe Huddleston said that it is going to take some time to re-educate youth and elderly that marijuana users, whether medicinally or recreationally, are not a menace to society. 

Village staff said that the law does not place restrictions on where it can be used, only where it can be advertised. 

A woman who uses medical marijuana said that allowing the sale of medical marijuana within Village limits would help her gain more independence. Village President Sean Widener said that the Village was told the chance that Mahomet could get a medical marijuana dispensary would be slim to none. 

Huddleston said that the Village could capitalize on tax dollars from medical marijuana in other ways. He is interested in helping patients build grow houses, garages or basements.

Not only does Huddleston believe that the Village could benefit from sales dollars, but also fees associated with the buildings and renovations.

He also stated that the opportunity to grow medicinal marijuana will save those patients money on prescription drugs, which they can turn around to spend in the community.

While none of the opponents to recreational marijuana were in disagreement with the benefits of medical marijuana, they said that allowing the sale of recreational marijuana did not align with their perceived values of the Mahomet community. 

Residents like Lisa Schwarzentraub said that she moved her family to Mahomet for a reason: the desirable characteristics that revolved around family values. Elizabeth Tandy said that Mahomet has offered great schools in a community that cares about living healthily.

Schwarzentraub said that the legalization of marijuana was brought to the state by a new governor instead of the citizens of Illinois while Tandy said that the option for municipalities to control whether or not it is sold within their limits can be controlled locally.

Brian Romanowski said that anytime a discussion like this comes up, local officials and residents need to look at if the proposal makes the community a better place to live. 

“Just because the state made it legal, doesn’t mean that we as a community say that it’s right for us,” he said.

Romanowski cited statistics about the use of marijuana and the mental health of youth. He also said that the use and possession of recreational marijuana is a federal crime, and asked if the Village is going to defy a federal law.

Mike Bednar said that when he moved his family here 12 years ago, they may have reconsidered establishing residence in the town had Mahomet already established the sale of recreational marijuana within Village limits.

He also voiced concern over having the substance available within Village limits, and said that as a parent of a teenager who is about to drive, being in a community where people could be under the influence of marijuana while behind the wheel frightened him. 

Bednar, a business professor at the University of Illinois, also said that he has seen businesses make short-sighted decisions for a short-term gain time and time again. He encouraged the Village trustees to make a long-term decision that would result in long-term reliability.

Jason Schifo asked the Village if they had looked into any studies on the financial impact recreational marijuana has on a community. Widener said they had not.

Schifo cited that not only do numbers of underage users rise in states that have legalized recreational marijuana, but that local governments end up losing money instead of gaining tax revenue.

Matthew Christianson, a physician, said that for every $1 in tax revenue gained, local governments spend $4 in law enforcement and health care costs.

Schwarzentraub also said that looking at tax revenue as a benefit does not mean that promises will be fulfilled by the state.

She called the management of state funds and programs “inconsistent and ineffectual.”

“Why do you think that all of a sudden this is going to be organized and put in place for all of the citizens of this town and the state?” she asked.

Tandy said that the marijuana plant has been altered over the last 20 to 30 years, offering 212-percent more THC than before. 

She said that the decisions the board makes sends a message to even the youngest members of the community. 

“My child asked me, since it will be legal will I try pot,” she said. 

“They see the decisions of lawmakers and they trust them; they believe you know what’s best.”

Depending on board feedback on Dec. 10, the ordinance will either be altered or put on the consent agenda for Dec. 19.

Village trustees have to pass an ordinance by Jan. 1 or the sale of recreational marijuana will become legal within Village limits.