By Danielle Coots

For the News-Current

BEAVERCREEK — Beavercreek City Council members Monday voted 4-1 in favor of a hold on medical marijuana in the city until January.

“We want to take time on this issue to make sure that our neighborhoods are kept safe,” Beavercreek Councilman Brian Jarvis said.

Governor John Kasich signed a bill June 8 allowing medical marijuana use in Ohio, which is expected to be in force September 2016. The decision of the Beavercreek City Council will place a hold on allowing cultivators, processors and medical cannabis dispensaries permits for an additional six months after being legal in Ohio.

The reason for the delay is to allow the city to collect more information from other neighboring communities that have already had the operations in progress and come up with a specific plan to better prepare the city for issues that may arise.

“We have several citizens at some point are going to look at these services,” Beavercreek City Councilmember Melissa Litteral said. “It’s only based on medical need and I think that although we always look out for what is best for the citizens and the community, I would hope that this would not create an issue to where our citizens would have to go out of this city to get the services for medical marijuana that they need and that their doctor has prescribed for them. I think it’s a very important issue that has to be looked at,.”

Beavercreek resident Diana Windemeyer wants the citizens to have a say.

“Doesn’t our vote count,” she said during the public input portion of the discussion. “This community voted against legalizing marijuana and I think we were right.”

Litteral was the only vote against the delay of permitting medical marijuana.

Danielle Coots is a freelance writer for Greene County News.