C. Spgs registers 451 medical marijuana businesse's TODAY.

[rightwinger]

The medical marijuana industry has taken root in Colorado Springs.

The city registered 451 medical marijuana businesses before Wednesdayâ??s 5 p.m. deadline, including 176 dispensaries, more than city officials had anticipated.

â??Thatâ??s amazing,â?� Mayor Lionel Rivera said.

â??First, Iâ??m surprised at the number of businesses that applied,â?� he said. â??I knew we had a pretty good core, but thatâ??s certainly more than I expected based on the reports Iâ??ve seen from the Police Department and the sales tax office.â?�

But Rivera predicts the number will shrink over time because of market forces.

â??There will be survivors, and there will be people that fall by the wayside,â?� he said.

All the registrations, including 204 for grow operations and 71 for medical marijuana-infused products, filled city coffers to the tune of $225,500.

The city could see even more revenue from the industry in the future.

In addition to sales taxes, Rivera wants to charge all medical marijuana businesses a $5,000 â??first-time feeâ?� and $2,000 a year after that for renewals.

â??Thatâ??s what Iâ??m going to advocate for,â?� the mayor said.

Medical marijuana businesses had until Wednesday to register with the city under new state regulations. Businesses that failed to register on time will have to close their doors.

â??Existing businesses had to certify the purchase or rental of a business space, a sales tax license and the timely remittance of sales tax,â?� the city said in a statement.

Under the new state regulations, both the city and the state have a year to develop licensing systems for the industry, the city said.

Colorado Springs Councilman Sean Paige, who is leading a local medical marijuana task force, said the city is still working on two ordinances, one that deals with business licensing and the other with land-use regulations, such as buffer zones.

â??I would assume that the business licensing (ordinance) could move rather quickly,â?� he said. â??Of course, the land-use one will be more contentious and take a lot longer because we obviously want citizen input into that process...I hope weâ??ll move quickly.â?�

Like Rivera, Paige predicts the number of medical marijuana businesses will decrease.

â??That number seems large, but I think a year from now, a lot of those businesses will go out of existence because of either market competition or the regulatory climate thatâ??s being createdâ?� under the new state legislation, Paige said.

â??Weâ??ll see a much different landscape than we see now,â?� he added. â??Those numbers may alarm some people, but weâ??re in a boom phase, and there will be a bust that will follow.â?�

Springs registers 451 medical marijuana businesses | marijuana, medical, springs - Public Affairs - Colorado Springs Gazette, CO

At the end of the first article it says: but weâ??re in a boom phase, and there will be a bust that will follow.â?�--No kidding!

176 dispensories in Colorado Springs. What we have a state estimate of 100K medical marijuana patients. Just do the math!

You know I really admire people who decided on opening up a business--but to me that many dispensories spells financial suicide.

Economics 101---9 out of 10 new businesse's fail within the first year. This number of dispensories will never last in Colorado Springs. They don't have the patients to sustain that many--so YES--we will be looking at a bust in the coming months, and in my opinion that which will rival the housing market bust.

Very glad I didn't jump in feet first on this one and open a dispensory!

So what's going on in Denver--anyone heard yet?

rightwinger Reviewed by rightwinger on 07-01-2010. C. Spgs registers 451 medical marijuana businesse's TODAY. Springs registers 451 medical marijuana businesses | marijuana, medical, springs - Public Affairs - Colorado Springs Gazette, CO At the end of the first article it says: but weâ??re in a boom phase, and there will be a bust that will follow.â?�--No kidding! 176 dispensories in Colorado Springs. What we have a state estimate of 100K medical marijuana patients. Just do the math! You know I really admire people who decided on opening up a business--but to me that many dispensories Rating: 5

[rightwinger]

Springs registers 451 medical marijuana businesses | marijuana, medical, springs - Public Affairs - Colorado Springs Gazette, CO

At the end of the first article it says: but weâ??re in a boom phase, and there will be a bust that will follow.â?�--No kidding!

176 dispensories in Colorado Springs. What we have a state estimate of 100K medical marijuana patients. Just do the math!

You know I really admire people who decided on opening up a business--but to me that many dispensories spells financial suicide.

Economics 101---9 out of 10 new businesse's fail within the first year. This number of dispensories will never last in Colorado Springs. They don't have the patients to sustain that many--so YES--we will be looking at a bust in the coming months, and in my opinion that which will rival the housing market bust.

Very glad I didn't jump in feet first on this one and open a dispensory!

So what's going on in Denver--anyone heard yet?

Geez--I remember just a few months ago when some people were complaining about 14 (fourteen) dispensories in Colorado Springs and were saying that was too many.--LOL

Now it's 176!!

[PolishPotFarmer]

That's great news, boom or bust. Let the Springs officials put that in their pipe and smoke it :rastasmoke:

[Ebbandflowian]

I'm very worried about buffer zones does anyone know or have any ideas about how this is going to play out???

[HighPopalorum]

Colorado Springs and their dysfunctional city government has provided me with a lot of entertainment over the last couple of years. I look forward to watching them try and reconcile the competing interests of the "god, guns and gays" crowd and their empty city coffers and bank accounts.

[copobo]

i think 100K patients could be a gross underestimation..

I don't do dispensaries that often, but when I do... I always have to wait in line.

[rightwinger]

i think 100K patients could be a gross underestimation..

I don't do dispensaries that often, but when I do... I always have to wait in line.

I know two dispensories owners--that you can walk into and get waited on immediately--both are stating they are struggleing to meet their expenses-"prior" to all these license fees, etc. -I don't expect them to get through the 1st year.

176 dispensories in Colorado Springs--it is simple economics 101--there are not enough patients to support 176 dispensories in Colo. Springs. We haven't even been told how many there will be in Denver or in other areas around the state.

This is a bust--and I truly feel sorry for those people who ran down to Colorado Springs yesterday--throwing all that money at the city coffers--whom have run into a Tsunami of competition--that will be out there trying to get every single marijuana patient signing up with them as providers.

And what determines that will be the price--quality--variety. I think there are many dispensory owners that have never been growers that believe they can grow easily--and are certain to find out that to be a good quality grower requires a lot of expensive equipment--air conditioning--venting--heating--electrical, and most importantly constant attention to the grows.

This was an effort to eliminate the independant growers-the ones that actually know how to grow--and the bad news has just started. Government expansion is self-propetuating--next people to show up will be building department officials making certain that all is up to code. If not--here comes the red tag--shutting down the business until all codes required are met and inspected.

[rightwinger]

I know two dispensories owners--that you can walk into and get waited on immediately--both are stating they are struggleing to meet their expenses-"prior" to all these license fees, etc. -I don't expect them to get through the 1st year.

176 dispensories in Colorado Springs--it is simple economics 101--there are not enough patients to support 176 dispensories in Colo. Springs. We haven't even been told how many there will be in Denver or in other areas around the state.

This is a bust--and I truly feel sorry for those people who ran down to Colorado Springs yesterday--throwing all that money at the city coffers--whom have run into a Tsunami of competition--that will be out there trying to get every single marijuana patient signing up with them as providers.

And what determines that will be the price--quality--variety. I think there are many dispensory owners that have never been growers that believe they can grow easily--and are certain to find out that to be a good quality grower requires a lot of expensive equipment--air conditioning--venting--heating--electrical, and most importantly constant attention to the grows.

This was an effort to eliminate the independant growers-the ones that actually know how to grow--and the bad news has just started. Government expansion is self-propetuating--next people to show up will be building department officials making certain that all is up to code. If not--here comes the red tag--shutting down the business until all codes required are met and inspected.

upps--forgot to mention:

Here is the worst: Under bill 1284 dispensory owners must buy from other dispensories--- Now I have been in my own unrelated business for decades--does anyone really believe that I am going to help my competition stay in business?- That's a laugh. These competitor dispensories may want to get rid of their junk--by selling high to another dispensory--the junk they have on their shelves that they can't get rid of--but com'on--they aren't going to furnish other competitors with their best at a reasonable cost. In fact--the rumor around C. Spgs. recently was the biological warfare that is going on between dispensories. Selling clones with spider mites and other diseases.

[copobo]

yea, except some smart dispensaries will in essence become distributors - making more of their money selling hq excess to other dispensaries, than selling to patients.

[copobo]

but you are right. anyone who is jumping in and doesn't already have growing down is going to lose this year.

in the 70/30 thing... what if...

say a store sells 1.5 lbs of meds a week.
they have 3.5 lbs of brown leaf for sale for $10000 because it is the house strain.

They grow 6 plants or use their counts to sell clones provided by another dispensary.

They BUY from other dispensaries ALL the weed they need to sell, and keep 1.5 lbs on hand at all time of OPW. (other peoples weed)

just a thought.