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Parachute trustees to consider retail pot applications

Ryan Hoffman
rhoffman@citizentelegram.com
Two proposed retail marijuana stores are located on First Street in Parachute.
Staff Photo |

The Parachute Board of Trustees will consider the first two applications for recreational marijuana retail stores within the town’s limits Thursday, Sept. 17.

Both applicants — Cannabist Castle Supermarket & Dispensary Lounge LLC and Parachute Green Joint LLC — are based out of Glenwood Springs.

Cannabist Castle’s proposed location is listed as 248 E. First St., while Parachute Green Joint is proposing a location at 315 E. First St. Under the ordinance governing marijuana facilities in the town, the Parachute Board of Trustees are the local the licensing application authority.



The two applications are the first to come before the trustees since the board repealed the town’s ban on marijuana establishments in June — a decision that has been met with backlash from some residents.

On Aug. 20, Let the People Vote, citizen-initiated committee, filed a petition to put the marijuana issue on the November 2016 ballot — the earliest date allowed under the statewide initiative legalizing marijuana in Colorado, Amendment 64. The group argues that trustees should have put a repeal of the marijuana ban before Parachute voters.



Previously, the trustees who voted in favor of repealing the ban have reaffirmed their decision, stating the availability of marijuana in other nearby communities and Parachute’s plummeting sales tax revenue in 2015 as part of the reason for repealing the ban.

The same day Let the People Vote filed its petition, trustees unanimously voted to put a 5 percent excise tax on unprocessed marijuana before voters this November — a decision that also faced criticism by opponents who want to vote on the greater marijuana issue.

Parachute resident Pam Jarrett, who has helped lead the Let the People Vote initiative, stated in an email that she and others plan on attending the public hearing to voice their opposition.

The public hearings are scheduled for 6:30 p.m. and will take place at Town Hall, 222 Grand Valley Way.


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