Deschutes Co. rural residents upset with pot growers

A sizable group of residents living in rural Deschutes County came out Thursday night to let their planning commissioners know they don’t want large marijuana grows next to their property.

Planning commissioners held a hearing and heard from several residents who say giant pot grows near their property cause a nuisance.

The commissioners called two hearings, another in a week, to focus on proposed rules regarding marijuana production, retail and wholesale.

Some residents said they’ve been threatened by growers who produce pot near their property.

Andy Andrews of Alfalfa said he wants the county to put stricter restrictions on growers.

“My life was threatened about a month ago, and I’m not going to tolerate that — and no one else in Alfalfa. We don’t like it, we don’t like the idea of the crime coming in there.”

“And what I said before, if you’ve got to have all of this stuff on your building, you’ve got to have barbed wire, security lights, fencing and everything else, who are your customers?” Andrews said.

NewsChannel 21 spoke to a medical marijuana business owner who says she is happy with the planning commission’s proposals for pot growers.

“The regulations in Deschutes County, I think, are a great start, and we’ll only see them evolve,” said Lindsey Pate, director of sales for Glass House Grown. “But the way it is now, I’m perfectly happy with them, as a cannabis grower.”

The planning commission will hold another public hearing next Thursday at the county offices at 1300 NW Wall Street at 5:30 p.m.

To review the proposal, or to submit written input, visit: www.deschutes.org/marijuana.

The growing and processing of medical marijuana has been legal in Oregon since voters passed the Oregon Medical Marijuana Act in 1998. A year ago, Oregon voters approved Measure 91, which legalized the possession and use of marijuana for adult (21+) recreational use.

State law gives the county the authority to adopt reasonable regulations for marijuana-related businesses in unincorporated Deschutes County. The county is working to develop and adopt local regulations by the end of 2015, before the Oregon Liquor Control Commission starts accepting applications for marijuana-related business licenses in January.