Mayor Lori Lightfoot downplays how much money legal marijuana will bring Chicago, says focus is on

[TexasTowelie]

Mayor Lori Lightfoot downplays how much money legal marijuana will bring Chicago, says focus is on neighborhoods


Mayor Lori Lightfoot on Monday defended her proposal to ban marijuana sales in much of downtown and called it a “misnomer” that legal marijuana would be a big boon to the city’s bottom line, saying it would bring in an estimated $10 million per year — just a small fraction of the city’s annual budget.

Last week, Lightfoot unveiled proposed zoning rules for recreational marijuana dispensaries in the city that would create seven zones across Chicago. Each zone would have a cap on the number of dispensaries allowed.

But much of downtown, including the Magnificent Mile, would be off-limits to sales, drawing criticism from cannabis interests that have eyed the central business district as a prime location to set up shop and aldermen who argue the mayor will be leaving money on the table.

“There’s a lot of real estate speculation, people got leases in places where they thought they were going to be able to open up supreme spots," Lightfoot said. “But, you know, if we had a two-story liquor store on Michigan Avenue, I think people would rightfully be offended by that.”

Read more: https://www.chicagotribune.com/politics/ct-lightfoot-downtown-marijuana-pushback-20190923-2nfoce6x7ze7dgufeajjzsrkba-story.html