GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — The cannabis competition is getting more intense.
That's why cannabis advocates like Michael Tuffelmire are frustrated with leaders in Grand Rapids.
"We're in competition with other states now, our neighbor just to the south is frankly moving at a more rapid pace than us and legalized it after us," says Tuffelmire.
With Illinois now fully embracing recreational marijuana, Michigan is not the only player in the Midwest.
"People aren't going to wait around and say okay I'll just wait 9 months with my investment, they'll just take it some place else," says Tuffelmire.
City Commissioner Senita Lenear proposed a 6 month delay on all recreational marijuana applications this week.
"There are so many issues with this ordinance it was an ordinance that was created when our backs were up against the wall," says Lenear.
There are no recreational shops in the city right now and only 1 medical marijuana location. Lenear says she proposed the delay because she wants more local ownership in the industry.
"We owe it to this community, we owe it to the industry, we owe it to the public, we owe it to ourselves to do our due diligence to get this right," says Lenear.
After initially passing Tuesday morning the proposal was reversed at the full meeting. But even with it's failure, Tuffelmire believes the mixed messaging is concerning the business community and could hurt future job growth.
"A moratorium of any sort, any kind of hold back or slow down is jobs we're not hiring," says Tuffelmire.
There are currently more than a dozen medical marijuana business applications in Grand Rapids that are awaiting approval.
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