OWOSSO -- Update: March 28th, 9:05 a.m.
The Planning Commission will be meeting Monday evening at 7:00 p.m. in the City Hall Council Chambers.
A medical marijuana dispensary moves in across the street from a Catholic Church and school in Owosso.
Now city council is considering a new ordinance that would make this illegal.
NBC25 talked to the business owner who wants to remain anonymous for fear of retaliation, and some parishioners about what should be done to resolve the controversy.
On M-21 in Owosso you'll find a place where kids go to school and across the street a place to find medical marijuana.
“I think this is an assault on children's innocence. They go to school to learn, obviously they’re curious, but this is not a way to learn about life,” said Joe Roland, a Parishioner of St. Paul Catholic Church.
The co-owner of 21 Herbal says they opened up about a month ago and picked the location on M-21 because real estate is hard to come by on the busy roadway.
“When we picked the location we actually contacted the church to see if they would have an issue with us moving across the street. They said they would discuss it and get back to us, so since we didn't hear anything from them we thought everything was fine,” said Zach, the Co-Owner of 21 Herbal.
But parishioners at St. Paul Catholic Church say it is certainly not fine for their children to be near the dispensary.
“It’s sad that children of this age have to be talked to about these things,” said Tim Feldpausch whose children attend St. Paul Catholic School.
The parishioners say they aren't trying to attack the owners of the store; instead they're angry at city council because they haven't done anything about it yet.
“What's going to happen in two months, three months? Are we going to have vending machines in the schools? Who ever thought this would be here, what’s next?” said Doug Edwards, a Parishioner of St. Paul Catholic Church.
Parishioners say they've seen young teens enter the store, but the co-owner says anyone under 18 isn't allowed.
“If you have parental consent and a recommendation from two separate doctors than a minor can be certified, but that's when you start to get into some real discrepancies in the law, and goes against some people's moral values and we don't want to dabble in that,” said Zach, the Co-Owner of 21 Herbal.
What they do dabble in, the co-owner says, is educating the public on the benefits of offering a safe alternative to some harmful prescription drugs.
“I get my medicine from these people and they are very compassionate. Personally, for me, medical marijuana relieves the pain in my back and legs so I can sleep easier at night,” said a medical marijuana patient.
Sleeping peacefully won't happen for these parishioners until they say 21 Herbal is moved far away.
The co-owner says he plans on moving despite what city council decides, it's just a matter of finding an appropriate location.
