Camas City Council extends ban on recreational marijuana

Those hoping to get into the recreational marijuana business in Camas will have to wait several more months for a definitive answer from the city.

The Camas City Council voted unanimously Monday night to extend its temporary ban on marijuana-related operations until Oct. 21. The current moratorium was set to expire next week, but the new ban took effect immediately.

State officials have allotted one pot shop for Camas, but city councilors aren’t sure if they want to allow business owners to establish any marijuana growing, processing or retail facilities there. While Initiative 502 passed in the November 2012 election, most Camas voters opposed legalizing recreational marijuana.

The state Liquor Control Board has capped marijuana retail locations at 334 shops throughout Washington. Licenses will be distributed this month through a lottery process, and the first shops could open in early July.

Camas is one of several small Clark County cities where councilors have enacted moratoriums to buy more time to explore their options. Some of those bans are set to expire this spring.

In the coming months, the city will hold several meetings before making a final decision on its role in the state’s new recreational pot industry. The councilors plan to hold public hearings on May 5 and Sept. 6 and then adopt a final ordinance on recreational marijuana by Oct. 6.