Fairbanks borough calls for another vote on pot cafe ban

In this file Aug. 20 photo, rows of cannabis plants are seen in the vegetative room of a cannabis farm in Juneau.

In this file Aug. 20 photo, rows of cannabis plants are seen in the vegetative room of a cannabis farm in Juneau.

FAIRBANKS — The Fairbanks North Star Borough Assembly is set to vote on whether to reconsider a proposed moratorium on pot cafes in the city of Fairbanks.

The assembly in August placed a moratorium on cannabis cafes until mid-November, but it only applied in borough cities outside of Fairbanks. In a vote last week, the assembly rejected a measure that would have extended the moratorium to include Fairbanks.

Assemblyman Matt Cooper, who voted against the extension, has filed for reconsideration of the proposal. He cited concerns about how the assembly would react if the Alaska Marijuana Control Board approves regulations for on-site consumption at its meeting next month.

The borough has been holding off on establishing planning and zoning rules for pot cafes until the state sets its own regulations. The borough’s Department of Community Planning is rejecting plans for retail stores with on-site consumption because state regulations have not yet been finalized, The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner reported.

The assembly will decide on whether to take up the issue of the proposed pot cafe moratorium in Fairbanks later this month.

“It makes sense to take the opportunity to be cautious,” Cooper said. “We are on the cutting edge of on-site consumption.”

Cannabis cafes are not allowed to operate in any other state.

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