(Joe Amon, Denver Post file)

Denver’s new Marijuana Advisory Council will hash out policy

Colorado’s legalization of recreational marijuana has left cities navigating mostly uncharted waters when it comes to regulation, enforcement and cash-heavy tax collections. Now Denver is bringing together high-level officials from far-flung agencies — ranging from public safety to budgeting to children’s affairs — to keep up with the new reality.

The new Marijuana Advisory Council met for the first time this week and will get together monthly.

Led by Ashley Kilroy, Mayor Michael Hancock‘s executive director for marijuana policy, the council’s 17 members “will make policy recommendations regarding marijuana goals, objectives and priorities to the mayor,” Kilroy said.

The council also gives agency heads and other officials a regular forum to discuss challenges facing the city as they crop up, she said.

One likely topic: How to spend tax revenue from cannabis sales that amounted to more than $700,000 in January alone.

The other members include mayoral chief of staff Janice Sinden; City Attorney Scott Martinez; chief financial officer Cary Kennedy, also deputy mayor; Stacie Loucks, director of Excise and Licenses; Safety Director Stephanie O’Malley; Police Chief Robert White; Fire Chief Eric Tade; Lauri Dannemiller, executive director of Parks and Recreation; and Lindsay Neil, director of the Office of Children’s Affairs.

This story was first published on The Spot