Marijuana in BloNo

The consumption, possession and cultivation is Illegal in the state of Illinois, this webpage is only intended to be used in an educational manner. This page does not describe the views or outlook of the author(s) of this page.  That being said, if you have anything to add onto this page, by for it.

 

 

                                                                                                     

Marijuana has, in recent time, become a large topic for conversation of people of all ages and all walks of life! Legal or Illegal, if legal to what extent, and how in the world does it have ANY effect on the you (the Bloomington-Normal population)? Being the middle of a large agricultural hub, the town of Bloomington Normal is caught in the middle of the fight in Illinois. Being part of the apex in agriculture production, there have been talks for years now about the growth and export of Cannabis for medical use. As of recently though, whispers are that sometime in the next year or two Marijuana will be legal on the federal level for recreational use.

The Politics

             Politics of Medicinal Marijuana-

Though a long fought battle for medicinal marijuana, in 2013 the Illinois legislature legalized the use of pot for those with chronic pains and illnesses  that can not be cured such as cancer. For many this means relief or even salvation from the ailments that cast a dark shadow over them with the ability to obtain 2.5 ounces every 14 days. There is a very in depth medical background check for these patients which include fingerprinting, photo ID, and criminal history. Then the patients have an even longer wait period before they can get the medical card from the local government (approximately 30- 60 days). Although the program has yet to take off, there is a site ,http://norml.org/legal/item/illinois-medical-marijuana, that gives all the information of the town of Normal's marijuana reform movement which includes qualifying illnesses, Patient Possession Limits, and operational dispensaries. Not only do these dispensaries give medication to the people it also opens up a larger job market, with the estimated jobs that would be created over 300 in Bloomington-Normal alone.

 

             Politics on recreational Marijuana- 

The politics on recreational marijuana are null, in the town of Bloomington-Normal, it is still illegal to possess, cultivate, and sell marijuana; and for the near foreseeable future it will remain as such. But recent surveys show that the younger (18-40 years of age) population that the stigma that is synonymous with marijuana is going away with approximately 86/100 people surveyed say that "marijuana should be legalized but regulated in the same way alcohol is regulated and taxed". If the current trend continues and the people get their way, it would bring in billions of dollars in revenue that would be poured back into our school systems and go to funding projects to better the town and state.  This seems to be the overwhelming ideology seeing as of February 2015 there is a Senate bill  ( Senate bill 753) that is going around that would legalize up to 15 grams (little over a 1/2 ounce) of marijuana for personal use and be in possession of up to 5 sativa marijuana plants in your household, but still has the bar on the sales of marijuana ( Huffington Post). Although this bill's original intent was in order to " Reduce the amount of arrests of young black men", this bill at its core will lower the arrests of any and all ethnicities that would be found in possession of low quantities of cannabis. There is also a House Senate Bill ( House Bill 218) that would make the possession of up to 30 grams of marijuana considered a petty offense and given a $100  "Uniform Cannabis Ticket", which is still a large step for  the person being given the ticket seeing as in 2014 being caught carrying 3.5 grams COULD have been sentenced anywhere from $100-$500 and up to 30 days of jail, seeing as the current law is very hazy in the what is to be done about the now criminal, and left it up to the officer's discretion. If either one of these laws went into effect, it would drastically reduce the number of arrests/ drop the crime rate by almost 83%.

 

The Medication in Bloomington Normal

 

There are currently 10 different cultivation businesses and a plethora of dispensaries that are all looking to set up shop in town and are currently going though zoning and location in which to "set up shop". According to the Vidette ( Illinois State University's news paper) cultivation centers will be located on the outskirts of town and are only there for medicinal marijuana and will be heavily secured with security guards and cameras located all around the facilities. As for the dispensaries, they will be located in town in more heavily populated areas in which patients can go and get their prescriptions filled. 

There are currently 2 dispensaries that are looking to set up in Bloomington-Normal

  • Nu Med RX LLC, on 501 Northtown Rd. Which is a nuclear pharmacy service that is based out of Mississippi and has be open since 2006

     

     

  • TGS Ill. LLC, on 109 E. Northtown Rd. Which is Westmont Medical Cannabis Dispensary, being a recently opened dispensary (2014), this dispensary is out of Colorado. 

 

Just Going to Smoke?

Smoking Marijuana is still illegal in the Town of Bloomington-Normal as of March, 2015. The current stand on the penalties is anything under 10 grams is 30 days to 6 months and is considered a misdemeanor, anything about 10 grams is a felony and the town of Bloomington Normal will prosecute to the fullest extent of the law, for possession, and up to a year of jail time if caught selling/trafficking anything less the 10 grams. 

There are local smoke shops that cater to your every day smoker, and specialize is TOBACCO SMOKING PRODUCTS ONLY, such as the Smoker's Den, Cigarette Express, Smoker's Choice, and Mother Murphy's. Every one of these shops buy glass either locally made or made around the surrounding areas. 

Being in a college town, marijuana is not too hard to find, the prices vary along with the quality of product, but the average sale prices are around $20/g, these prices often change based on the quality and quantity in which the person is buying them, and who they are buying from.

If you are not by any of the campuses around town, Bloomington-Normal also has a few skate parks dotted around by parks, and again, the prices and quality are subject to change. 

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