That the City Council of University Place (UP) is considering marijuana (MJ) is not unlike adding NaOCl to C3H80. It’s an explosive mix not a financial fix.
According to reporter Brynn Grimley’s Tacoma News Tribune (TNT) article (Sept.20), “City Attorney Steve Victor previously recommended the council overturn its 2-year-old ban on the sale, production and processing of marijuana in the city. Victor cited the economic benefit of the businesses, saying the additional tax revenue would help the cash-strapped city that is eliminating its recreation programming next year to help fill a projected $1 million budget gap.”
That’s what the City of Fife and the City of Lakewood said with regards a similar addictive influence: gambling.
In 2004 Fife “signed an agreement after the tribe bought Fife’s largest hotel, the Executive Inn, removed it from the tax rolls and converted it to a tribal casino and hotel.”
In return the tribe would help balance the city’s budget.
But this past August 21, the story of the plight of the City of Fife was told in the TNT, Fife fearful of being unable to fund infrastructure for failing to fork over the numbers reflecting the frequency with which the city delivered services to the tribes’ nearby Emerald Queen Casino.
The shortfall?
Nearly $1.2 million.
Meanwhile Lakewood is reporting “major operating revenues down last year” due, in part, to decreased “cardroom activity.”
Last year’s shortfall?
$1,353,769, (pp.12, 13 and 15).
What shall we say of a city that is a contributor to, a facilitator of, addiction?
Pity the city whose means of making money depends on the addiction of its people.
The City of Lakewood needs to wake up and support Marijuana sale, production and processing of marijuana here also. The city could cash in on the revenue that is being made by other cities with purchases from the Lakewood citizens who partake in MJ.
WAKE UP CITY COUNCIL AND SMELL THE WEED, I MEAN MONEY!!!!!!!
LETS GO MJ LETS GO!!! LETS GO MJ LETS GO!!!
http://nation.time.com/2013/12/18/washington-residents-smoke-way-more-weed-than-officials-thought/
All I can say to the UP City Council is, just say no! Basically what the city attorney is suggesting is that you, dear council, become drug dealers.
It’s time to put the fear behind us. This nonsense keeps coming up. The people have spoken. In a time when municipalities are desperate for more funds, they are willing to let fear and decades of misinformation overlook important new revenue sources.
This November 9 more states have initiatives on the ballot, and 5 of those are for full legal recreational use.
We can either get ahead of this and profit from legal recreational use or stay behind and float more bad ideas for revenue which unjustly target the poor and the aged.