The Glenwood Springs City Council denied a specific use allow application for a retail cannabis dispensary at 2114 Grand Ave. on a 5-1 vote Thursday night time.
Council Member Shelley Kaup was the only one in favor of allowing for the allow Council Member Steve Davis was not at the conference.
But just before the council took motion, a letter from the applicant and operator of Form Castle dispensary, John Dyet, was read aloud for the file by Town Lawyer Karl Hanlon.
The letter accused numerous council associates of biased conduct when justifying why they voted in opposition to a movement to approve the application throughout the Could 20 metropolis council meeting.
Through that meeting, a movement to approve the application unsuccessful because of to a 3-3 vote and it was decided to continue on the hearing to the subsequent metropolis council assembly and allow Council Member Ingrid Wussow to forged her vote on the software right after examining the conference recording.
Dyet wrote that the 3 council customers who voted versus his application prejudged the application and demanded that Mayor Pro Tem Charlie Willman and Councilor Tony Hershey recuse on their own from voting on the exclusive use allow the 2nd time close to.
“Tony (Hershey) said from the commencing that he would not be in favor of this software in advance of we even submitted it,” Dyet wrote.
“Charlie is a shame, no explanation necessary. Ingrid, whilst I hope she renders her decision with a honest method tonight and would recognize her reviewing this from how the ordinance is published, she has obviously expressed biased behavior and prejudged this software.”
Hanlon read Dyet’s letter, noting that he acquired it in an e mail about an hour in advance of the town council conference.
The letter also said that Kaup’s vote on the specific use permit for the duration of the May 20 assembly should not have counted for the reason that it was based mostly on the number of educational facilities in proximity to Hyland Park.
“Shelley dependent her vote on information and facts that is not outlined in metropolis code hence she are unable to be dependable to vote as metropolis polices involve,” Dyet wrote.
Having said that, it was Councilor Paula Stepp, not Kaup, who denied the allow dependent on the selection of schools and kids close to the retail cannabis store’s proposed location.
Kaup said Dyet should have perplexed her with a different council member while writing the letter, noting that she would vote the very same as she had in the course of the past meeting, which would be in help of approving the permit software. Kaup said she voted in line with the city’s arranging and zoning commission choice to approve the permit as well.
Following studying the letter, Hanlon suggested the council to manage the applicant supplemental owing system for rebuttal even though the listening to had shut.
“I’d also caution the council not to make a choice tonight dependent on what have been, in some instances, really personalized assaults made against you individually,” Hanlon stated.
“This is a land use listening to in which you have to sit as an neutral decide. I know these remarks may possibly be inflammatory to you and you may well take some personalized umbridge with them. I warning you to search at the records in terms of producing a conclusion this night.”
Trevor McGarvey is Dyet’s lawyer and spoke on his behalf during the 5 minutes allotted by the council for rebuttal.
“I believe we experienced fears not only customers of the Kind Castle, but also people today in the general public experienced considerations about the way the final meeting was dealt with and some of the responses of city council associates that could possibly are inclined to reveal they weren’t giving this a fair shake or they weren’t neutrally deciding it based mostly on what the municipal code established forward,” McGarvey explained.
He reported there is a history in between the town and Dyet when it will come to Dyet’s purposes for dispensaries in Glenwood Springs.
“A lot of funds was laid out, a ton of time place into the course of action,” McGarvey reported.
“Applications and licenses had been granted by the nearby licensing authority and the hearing officer in the past and then overturned on appeal by the metropolis council. I believe some of Mr. Dyet’s disappointment is from placing so considerably time and exertion into creating this perform.”
Whilst the approval of the application was not assured, McGarvey claimed his shopper relied on the list of conditions set forth by the organizing and zoning fee.
“We relied on that checklist and went in advance and tried out to do anything they recommended. In some cases those items price tag a lot of money,” McGarvey explained.
“I think some of the city council members’ reason for denial did not conform to what the final decision was supposed to be produced on per metropolis of Glenwood Springs municipal code.”
Willman claimed he made his choice to deny the allow without the need of any prejudgement or conflict of fascination.
“The point that I was disparaged in the electronic mail does not effect my choice at all,” Willman claimed.
“That’s Mr. Dyet’s place of see.”
Wussow mentioned she would vote to deny the software, reasoning that the use of the building did not comply with the site.
“That’s where by my choice arrived from,” Wussow stated.
Godes was the only one to adjust his vote from approving the software to denying it.
“Wussow, your opinions have swayed me and I will be voting in favor of (denying) the motion as well,” Godes explained.
Reporter Shannon Marvel can be reached at 605-350-8355 or [email protected].
