DEARBORN, Mich. \u2014 Community leaders from the South End of Dearborn are speaking up \u00a0against proposed restrictions about where marijuana \u201ccaregivers\u201d can build large-scale grow facilities, the details of which would restrict most of the facilities to the South End.<\/p>\n
The proposal floated by the City of Dearborn\u2019s planning department would restrict these large indoor marijuana grow facilities to industrially-zoned spaces with a 350 foot distance between the facility and any residential housing. Based on the available properties that meet that description, nearly 40% of the properties that could be used to grow marijuana are located in the South End, something community leaders say is not equitable.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
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<\/div>\nIn the above graphic, the properties highlighted in red would be the properties where large-scale medical marijuana facilities could be grown. Community leaders are saying they want the proposal changed so that there\u2019s a more equitable distribution of property.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s about ensuring we have an even distribution, it\u2019s about ensuring we aren\u2019t concentrating these facilities in one area where we already have enough pollution, bad smells and problems,\u201d said Khalil Othman, a candidate for Dearborn City Council. \u201cI\u2019m not in favor of a 1,000 foot requirement because it would concentrate things in the South End even more, but we need to open it up to commercially zoned areas so these facilities can be located elsewhere, too.\u201d<\/p>\n
Some activists say their goal is to have city council put off the proposal until it\u2019s had more community input.\u00a0 Other activists are advocating for a 1,000 foot buffer, which would force every single property into the South End.<\/p>\n
The below chart, which shows the eligible properties in black, show that a 1,000 foot buffer between properties and residential zones would mean only properties in the South End meet the requirements, concentrating marijuana grow facilities in the South End for future generations.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
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<\/div>\n\u201cIf I\u2019m going to be stuck with something in the South End, I\u2019d rather it be a thousand feet away,\u201d said Gussan Abdulkarim. \u201cI want this as far away from my home as possible.\u201d<\/p>\n
Activists gathered outside the Dearborn administrative center on Monday to protest the proposal, with about 50 persons attending the event. Many carried signs that said \u201cKeep Marijuana 1,000 feet Away.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
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<\/div>\nIf the proposal is successfully shot down, medical marijuana \u201ccaregivers,\u201d which includes any business that provides marijuana to medical marijuana card holders, can still create grow facilities in Dearborn. The main difference would be that there would be no restrictions on where the facilities can be located, they would only need approval from the state of Michigan, and they still might end up concentrated in the South End because that\u2019s where the largest available warehouse facilities are.<\/p>\n
The protest seemed to garner some support from progressives West End residents on social media. Rev. Terri Cole-Pilarski, the pastor at Christ Episcopal Church on Military Avenue, said she supported the general idea of more equity between the South End and other parts of Dearborn, but didn\u2019t understand, why, then, people were pushing for a thousand foot buffer that would concentrate the properties on the South End.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe 1000 foot allowance that some are proposing limits locations and pushes any potential places for growth into the SE side only,\u201d said Pilarski. \u201cI agree that there should be equity in this and that the site should not be forced into one are only.\u201d<\/p>\n
Others ridiculed the protest and the protesters, claiming it was part of an outdated view of marijuana that was resistant to change.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy don’t you spend your efforts getting rid of pill mills? Marijuana is the least of Dearborn’s problems,\u201d said Gaylen Maki. \u201cTake time to educate yourself on the medicinal benefits. The pharmacies and drug pushing doctors in this city are the real problem.\u201d<\/p>\n
Abdulnaser Alnajar, who spoke at the rally and said he was against a thousand foot buffer, said he wanted more equity and tried to correct the misperceptions.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u00a0understand why people need it and I have no objection to that,\u201d said Alnajar. \u201cThe concern here is why facilities have to be concentrated in one area – and do we really that many?\u201d<\/p>\n
Dearborn schools trustee Adel Mozip spoke at the rally also and said the issue showed a lack of respect to the will of voters.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe South and East End voted overwhelmingly against marijuana twice – against medical and recreational marijuana,\u201d said Mozip. \u201cFor the city council to locate so many of those facilities in the South End is a double negative.\u201d<\/p>\n
South End activists said they expect to attend today\u2019s city council meeting to voice their opposition.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n