Thread by @shayshinecastle

CLAB interviews are up first, so I'll start the thread right now. This is for two non-voting members, something regular members of CLAB requested. There are 11 applicants.

CLAB has been having a rough go of it. Apparently there are a lot of conflicting opinions and a lack of cohesion since it's a new board.

This is an interesting one, because certain seats are reserved for certain folks. 2 from the industry, 2 from health/education realm, 3 from community at large.

It's been said (by some applicants/watchers) that the group lacks knowledge and/or expertise, but I can't say if that is accurate, having never watched a CLAB meeting.

Allison Bayley is up first. She works in public health (substance abuse work with Boulder County, with a focus on youth) and has done youth work for City of Boulder, including the Youth Opportunity Advisory Board.

Every applicant will answer the same q: What's your biggest concern about the industry?

"our goal is to make sure marijuana is used by adults who are making an informed decision to use and that folks who are underage are not using marijuana products."

Concerned with the "normalization" of youth use and how advertising, other industry practices can "further normalize" that.

Youth use has remained stable but they are switching to concentrates (higher levels of THC) from flower (smoking)

I find myself really struggling to care about kids using pot. Even though I know it's bad for growing brains.

Like, the issue isn't substance; it's the factors that drive use of any substance, right?

But clearly I have no kids and I managed to stay away from drugs as a kid, so there's a big blind spot here. I welcome the perspective of parents/others to supplement my thinking!

Truman Bradley, who is a former cannabis biz owner and exec director of marijuana industry group, takes a really long time to say not much.

"It's important for CLAB to provide the expertise city council is seeking," Bradley says. "Hospitality, delivery ... these are qs that will be facing city council and Boulder."

He got to the meat right at the end. Good for ya, Bradley.

Bia Campbell -works for a Denver-based cannabis consulting firm; formerly Denver’s Office of Marijuana Policy.

"How we protect our youth in the midst of this new legalized commodity" is the big issue, Campbell says. She has done youth prevention work, in Denver. Worked with public schools and the health dept there.

Campbell: "I have this nuance of both sides of the story, as well as understanding policy." CLAB currently lacks policy experts, she says.

I can't see the timer, but it feels like she's gone way over, no? Maybe not. She's just packing a lot of info in there.

Todd Ellison owns a cannabis biz in Boulder. Those are all the notes I took from his application, which was.... a bit less polished than the rest.

Filling out applications is just not some folks' strong suit, which is a shame, bc a piece of paper is a poor judge of abilities.

He didn't really say much in his answer either, so maybe he's just not good at talking himself up.

Jeff Gard is a cannabis attorney. He served on a state task force and advised many local governments on cannabis, including Boulder.

"If you want status quo, then you don't need me," Gard says. "It's been me and my firm that has advanced virtually every police change for the better."

Ellison could take a page out of this guy's book.

"My biggest concern is that Boulder is not in lockstep with the state. It is out of step with the state," Gard says. Frequent complaint of the industry is that rules are stricter and more hodge-podge in Boulder.

Stacy Green - who I think is the first applicant so far who actually lives in Boulder; typically a requirement for boards and commissions — is a doctor who uses cannabis in her practice.

Since these are non-voting members, I believe council is waving the you-must-live-in-Boulder thing. Majority of applicants don't live here.

Green: "The youth risks are on my mind, of course, always, but that is one of many. ... My biggest concern for cannabis in Boulder is that we achieve some sort of balance."

"In order to achieve that balance, we really need to focus on hearing the voices of all the different groups." CLAB has many perspectives, but no real medical expert with cannabis experience, she says.

Tim O'Shea is our resident "gov't guy" — the one applicant for every board who has served on multiple city groups. In this case, he was recently a library commissioner.

Plus some other stuff.

Hey! Nagle is here! Glad to see things are alright. I thought she'd be out for a few weeks, which (probably) would have meant something bad happened.

O'Shea: "The city is above reproach with how they've navigated what's coming down from the state. ...(But) we have competing agendas."

"With respect to all the agendas that are here this evening, I'm not really bringing one," O'Shea says. That's what we need.

Natalie Portman-Marsh addresses her maiden name, saving me the trouble of having to do that for her.

I literally took no notes from her application other than she doesn't live in Boulder and she has no experience with this board.

She does "system change work."

It's all coming back to me know. I needed a weed whacker to cut through the jargon in her application, so I wisely wrote nothing.

Correction: "know" should be "now" in previous tweet

She's a mom of a high schooler and talking (very vaguely) about impacts of marijuana on kids.

Ryan Quinn is not here, so forget him.

Ditto for Richard Siebold. Both of them are in the cannabis industry.

Kathryn Thomson was a MAP member (CLAB predecessor) works in cannabis tech and owns a cannabis-focused biz consulting firm. She also worked for The Farm.

Craving potato chips. I'm sure that's not related to this discussion in any way.

Thomson: "Balance is critical. This is a new and evolving industry that is not going anywhere. It's essential."

That wraps interviews. Council will do appointments next week, late in the meeting.

Again, it's two non-voting seats that last 5 years (March 31, 2025)

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