barnyard
Member
Until further notice — from somewhere — enterprising cannabis enthusiasts assume it's OK to hang out to consume weed in social, yet sort of private, recreational settings.
Billed as Denver's first legal private cannabis club, Club 64, met for the first time at 4:20 p.m. Monday at a Larimer Street retail store.
"We will probably go until New Year's and a little after. There will probably be some cannabis," Club 64 general counsel Robert J. Corry Jr. said as the party began.
And, in tiny Del Norte in southern Colorado, a private marijuana den attached to the White Horse Inn coffee and head shop along U.S. Highway 160 opened late Monday morning.
Amendment 64 won voter approval in November and made it legal in Colorado for people 21 and older to possess 1 ounce of marijuana, grow up to six marijuana plants and give marijuana to another adult.
But Coloradans can't smoke or consume marijuana publicly and openly, according to the law.
They can smoke or ingest pot at home and, as Corry and White Horse Inn owner Paul Lovato are assuming, they can also do so inside private marijuana-friendly businesses or settings.
"Nothing in the amendment language permits consuming (marijuana) openly and publicly," said Mark Couch, spokesman for the state Task Force on the Implementation of Amendment 64.
The rules on any clubs or lounges, Couch said, "will be sorted out in the months ahead by legislators, law enforcement and the task force."
Couch suggested law enforcement should be contacted for clarification.
Denver Police spokesman Sonny Jackson said the department would have to consult with city attorneys. Denver Assistant City Attorney David Broadwell said he had no comment, except the city awaits further guidance from the state.
State Attorneys General Office spokeswoman Carolyn Tyler said the task force should be asked questions related to implementation of Amendment 64.
Denver's district attorney won't weigh in until a specific case is brought by law enforcement, spokeswoman Lynn Kimbrough said.
Legal recreational marijuana sales can be made only through licensed pot shops, which would not be licensed until June or opened until October, Couch said.
Meanwhile, celebrations were afoot at Club 64, a chartered members-only club devoted to the use of cannabis.
Club 64's meeting locations, Corry said, will be disclosed to members only through its website, Club-64.com. Corry said the club will run on private membership fees, and could sell other refreshments — not cannabis.
Corry said the website went live Sunday night, and by the time the ribbon was cut on the first meeting of the club, more than 100 people had become members. Online, they paid $30. At the door, the fee was $50.
"We're making it safe for people," Corry said. "There are a lot of people who, for one reason or another, can't smoke at home."
People might not want to smoke near children, he said. They might have a disapproving spouse. They might live in a rental home where it's prohibited.
"People are social by nature," said Chloe Villano, a Club 64 principal whose Cloverleaf Business Solutions consults with medical marijuana businesses. "It's important at this time to provide a safe place for them to associate and celebrate this new freedom."
Lovato originally had planned to open his shop at midnight New Year's Eve, but instead opened Monday morning. He wanted to be the state's first business dedicated to recreational marijuana consumption — and his place is open to anyone of age.
Lovato also originally had planned to make the business a hash bar/coffee shop, where a small quantity marijuana would be given as a gift to customers who purchased a $15-$20 cup of coffee because, so far, no one is licensed to sell pot.
However, he decided against doing that, he said, because he didn't want to abuse the law.
"I didn't want to spit in the face of the government that was letting me do this," Lovato said. "I'm not going to push the boundary, you know. But I think I can legally give it away free."
The business model here, said Lovato, a former luxury RV salesman, is that he will have patrons aplenty to smoke his free samples in a private building he leases next to his commercial building, where they can buy coffee drinks, T-shirts, mugs, bumper stickers, pipes and other paraphernalia.
"I should have people lining up for this," said Lovato, who moved from Denver to Del Norte specifically to create this niche business there.
"This is my opportunity," Lovato said. "This will get me where I want to be in life."
If state or city authorities shut down private cannabis clubs after Monday, Corry said, Club 64 should be grandfathered in. Lovato expressed the same thought about his business.
"But we hope there will be imitators," Corry said. "My view is let a thousand flowers bloom."
Billed as Denver's first legal private cannabis club, Club 64, met for the first time at 4:20 p.m. Monday at a Larimer Street retail store.
"We will probably go until New Year's and a little after. There will probably be some cannabis," Club 64 general counsel Robert J. Corry Jr. said as the party began.
And, in tiny Del Norte in southern Colorado, a private marijuana den attached to the White Horse Inn coffee and head shop along U.S. Highway 160 opened late Monday morning.
Amendment 64 won voter approval in November and made it legal in Colorado for people 21 and older to possess 1 ounce of marijuana, grow up to six marijuana plants and give marijuana to another adult.
But Coloradans can't smoke or consume marijuana publicly and openly, according to the law.
They can smoke or ingest pot at home and, as Corry and White Horse Inn owner Paul Lovato are assuming, they can also do so inside private marijuana-friendly businesses or settings.
"Nothing in the amendment language permits consuming (marijuana) openly and publicly," said Mark Couch, spokesman for the state Task Force on the Implementation of Amendment 64.
The rules on any clubs or lounges, Couch said, "will be sorted out in the months ahead by legislators, law enforcement and the task force."
Couch suggested law enforcement should be contacted for clarification.
Denver Police spokesman Sonny Jackson said the department would have to consult with city attorneys. Denver Assistant City Attorney David Broadwell said he had no comment, except the city awaits further guidance from the state.
State Attorneys General Office spokeswoman Carolyn Tyler said the task force should be asked questions related to implementation of Amendment 64.
Denver's district attorney won't weigh in until a specific case is brought by law enforcement, spokeswoman Lynn Kimbrough said.
Legal recreational marijuana sales can be made only through licensed pot shops, which would not be licensed until June or opened until October, Couch said.
Meanwhile, celebrations were afoot at Club 64, a chartered members-only club devoted to the use of cannabis.
Club 64's meeting locations, Corry said, will be disclosed to members only through its website, Club-64.com. Corry said the club will run on private membership fees, and could sell other refreshments — not cannabis.
Corry said the website went live Sunday night, and by the time the ribbon was cut on the first meeting of the club, more than 100 people had become members. Online, they paid $30. At the door, the fee was $50.
"We're making it safe for people," Corry said. "There are a lot of people who, for one reason or another, can't smoke at home."
People might not want to smoke near children, he said. They might have a disapproving spouse. They might live in a rental home where it's prohibited.
"People are social by nature," said Chloe Villano, a Club 64 principal whose Cloverleaf Business Solutions consults with medical marijuana businesses. "It's important at this time to provide a safe place for them to associate and celebrate this new freedom."
Lovato originally had planned to open his shop at midnight New Year's Eve, but instead opened Monday morning. He wanted to be the state's first business dedicated to recreational marijuana consumption — and his place is open to anyone of age.
Lovato also originally had planned to make the business a hash bar/coffee shop, where a small quantity marijuana would be given as a gift to customers who purchased a $15-$20 cup of coffee because, so far, no one is licensed to sell pot.
However, he decided against doing that, he said, because he didn't want to abuse the law.
"I didn't want to spit in the face of the government that was letting me do this," Lovato said. "I'm not going to push the boundary, you know. But I think I can legally give it away free."
The business model here, said Lovato, a former luxury RV salesman, is that he will have patrons aplenty to smoke his free samples in a private building he leases next to his commercial building, where they can buy coffee drinks, T-shirts, mugs, bumper stickers, pipes and other paraphernalia.
"I should have people lining up for this," said Lovato, who moved from Denver to Del Norte specifically to create this niche business there.
"This is my opportunity," Lovato said. "This will get me where I want to be in life."
If state or city authorities shut down private cannabis clubs after Monday, Corry said, Club 64 should be grandfathered in. Lovato expressed the same thought about his business.
"But we hope there will be imitators," Corry said. "My view is let a thousand flowers bloom."
