Planning commission forwards draft rules for state‑licensed "natural medicine" businesses to county commissioners

Planning staff presented a draft land‑use code amendment to add a new section (proposed section 5‑31) to regulate state‑licensed natural medicine businesses, including healing centers, cultivation operations, manufacturing and testing facilities. The staff presentation noted the 2022 citizen‑initiated statewide measure that decriminalized personal use for people 21 and older and authorized licensed facilitators to administer natural medicines in a therapy setting.

The proposal would not permit natural medicine businesses as home occupations. "State law does not permit natural medicine businesses to operate as a home occupation," Planning staff said during the presentation. Instead, staff proposed treating licensed healing centers as business and professional offices (administrative review in commercial zones) and classifying cultivation, manufacturing, and testing as light industrial uses in appropriate industrial zones. The draft includes the state’s minimum 1,000‑foot buffer from child‑care centers, preschools and K‑12 schools and requires that operations be located inside buildings and comply with all state licensing and security standards.

Commissioners raised a series of technical and policy questions during a lengthy Q&A. They asked whether staff should impose hours limits on manufacturing and testing but not on healing centers, how the county’s zoning choices compare with local marijuana regulations, whether product sourcing and inventory tracking are state responsibilities, and whether local taxation of therapeutic administration would be allowed. Staff repeatedly noted that many licensing, security and inventory requirements are set by the state and that local time/place/manner regulation must be reasonable and consistent with state law.

At least one commissioner asked whether the county was being more restrictive of natural medicine production than it had been for marijuana. Staff replied that natural medicine production is generally indoor and small (the state sets square‑foot limits) and that directing manufacturing/testing to light industrial zones reflected those operational characteristics.

The commission heard staff note referral comments (including written feedback about hours of operation) and was told the draft amendment had been posted and noticed on the county website. A commissioner then moved to recommend the proposed amendment to the Board of County Commissioners and the motion was seconded. The transcript records at least one commissioner voting no; the official roll call tally on that motion was not included in the meeting transcript excerpts provided.

What happens next: The Planning Commission moved its recommendation to the Board of County Commissioners. The BOCC will consider the referral and any additional public comment at a subsequent hearing. Staff said that because many substantive licensing and operational details remain state responsibilities, the county’s code focuses on land‑use placement, site standards, and compatibility with neighboring uses.