Someone from Hennessey wants to locate a marijuana growing business inside the town limits and recently contacted Hennessey Town Attorney John Wynne about the laws.

Wynne didn’t say who called him, but did say Hennessey’s “boiler plate” ordinance approved in November is “fairly stiff” and only allows for retail marijuana sales, Wynne said at the Oct. 7 town trustee meeting.

The board also learned there are marijuana growing facilities outside the town limits south on State Highway 51 and northwest of U.S. 81.

Wynne said some town boards are being “attacked” in the court system over their marijuana laws. Some are using “zoning restrictions” to deal with it.

Some because it’s an “unusual business and has an impact on other businesses due to odor, noise or traffic issues…and, do you want to live next to it?”

He said the board has options, including wait-and-see if they get sued, but said he would email them lists of other options.

“Right now the law is kind of a moving target,” Wynne said. “Marijuana is a competitive product and some other towns and cities are relaxing their marijuana ordinances.

“There’s a growing facility in Wakita, two retailers in Pond Creek, a dozen or more in Enid and one in Seiling,” said Wynne of Enid, whose firm represents 15 or more Oklahoma municipalities.

At Seiling, the retailer owned a restaurant across the street from an old liquor store and the town wouldn’t allow his marijuana business. The owner said he’d move his business a mile outside the town limits. That way the town wouldn’t get any of his sales tax money, Wynne said.

The Seiling board ended up giving him a permit.

“The way our (Hennessey) ordinance reads, no one could put in a retail store here,” said Curtis Turner, the town’s public works director.

“A retail store can’t be within 1,000 feet of a school or 300 feet from any park, church, or residence, so that’s the whole town,” said Turner.

Two or three other people have picked up copies of the ordinance said Tiffany Tillman, town administrator. They were interested in putting in retail stores.

Turner asked about Enid retailers adding a 7% extra sales tax on marijuana sales, but not on pipes and “other accessories.”

That extra 7% goes to the Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Authority, said someone in the audience. OMMA is a state agency responsible for licensing, regulating and administering the medical marijuana program for the state.

Someone else said they didn’t think there was a tax on prescription medicine.

“There are no medical marijuana prescriptions,” said Police Chief Hank Weber. “A doctor only recommends it.”

The board took no action on their agenda item to revise the marijuana ordinance.

Trustees at the meeting were Mayor Bert Gritz, Vice Mayor Clif Vogt, Wes Hardin and Richard Simunek. Absent was Trustee Keith Meek.

Other staff at the meeting were Treasurer Teresa Weber, Assistant Chief Ed Cangiano and Library Director Ruth Ann Replogle.

Visitors in the audience included Mickey and Kelly Bullis and Trail Life troop leaders Chad Hurst, Steve Matthews and Blake Victor and troop members Kyler Walters, Brendon Hurst, Acen Victor and Jaret Matthews.