Mt. Prospect won't hold public hearings over pot dispensaries

Mount Prospect will consider the approval of marijuana dispensaries much like it does pharmacies, and not require public hearings.

Community Development Director Bill Cooney said his staff believes state guidelines already address the operation of the dispensaries. Therefore, he recommended they be a permitted use and they be considered similarly to pharmacies, therefore no public hearings would be needed.

Village board members agreed.

State law prohibits locating dispensaries within 1,000 feet of any preschools, elementary or secondary schools, day care centers or day care homes, or within a residentially zoned area.

Trustee Steve Polit expressed satisfaction with the state regulation, saying it seemed to cover all the security and control issues. "If all the bills that came out of Springfield were written this tough and this well, I think we would be in a lot better shape in Illinois," he said.

Trustee Michael Zadel agreed. "Because of the significant regulations that the state has imposed, I think simple is better in this case," he said.

Meanwhile, Cooney said Mount Prospect will not be home to a marijuana-growing facility, because there's no place in the village that suits the state's strict guidelines.

The state will license one dispensary in each of two districts that include parts of Mount Prospect. District 1 consists of Elk Grove and Schaumburg townships and District 32 consists of Wheeling and Maine townships.

Chicago resident Nonna Knapp told trustees she has applied for a license for a dispensary and has found a space in Mount Prospect she considers perfect because of its central location in the district.