Some marijuana rules on hold in Josephine County

GRANTS PASS, Ore. – A new effort by Josephine County Commissioners focuses on marijuana-related events in public spaces.

A newly proposed rule would ban events encouraging marijuana use on county property. It would make the application process to use county spaces more strict and include fines if someone breaks the rules.

Commissioners were set to discuss the idea at a weekly business meeting on the morning of February 7. However, because of the language in the rule, the commissioners decided to table the discussion.

Josephine County Commissioner Dan DeYoung said, “This particular one just had the language in it that any contract we do with anyone at a special event or park when they sign into a park, they know, they’ve been told that this is not legal behavior in Josephine County”

Commissioners plan to discuss the issue again once they have input from department heads and law enforcement.

Meanwhile, an ordinance regulating marijuana grows in Josephine County’s rural residential zones is on hold.

The commissioners passed an ordinance back in December outlining how and where marijuana can be grown. Rather than going into effect in March, the rules are now on hold after the Land Use Board of Appeals received more than 40 complaints from growers.

“We have had an organization that has appealed our decision to LUBA,” DeYoung said. “When you ask LUBA to weigh in, it’s basically asking for a third opinion because the two parties can’t get along.”

No decision has been made. The county and growers are waiting on LUBA before any final rules go into place.

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