The Maple Valley City Council isn’t known for rushing things. Anyone who’s attended more than a few meetings would never accuse the council of being in a hurry — except when it comes to the issue of medical marijuana collective gardens.

Within two months of introducing a proposed ordinance for a ban, the council voted 6-1 in support of it. Their decision came as a shock to many people at the meeting, but for different reasons. While some didn’t think they would actually pass a ban, others were amazed they came to a decision at all so swiftly.

To compare, the council started to deal with zoning for the northwest quadrant in 2005, when I was still in high school. They finally voted to approve zoning in late May. The Witte Road roundabout was first sketched in 2004 and completed a year ago, eight years later.

Maybe it’s just me, but medical marijuana collective gardens seems more complicated and more controversial than a roundabout. Yet a decision was reached very quickly and with strong support among the council.

From what I’ve gathered, the ban served two purposes.

The state medical cannabis law allows for cities to approve zoning for medical marijuana collective gardens — if they want to. At the same time, the Drug Enforcement Agency and the Department of Justice argue that the Controlled Substance Act invalidates this law.

Yet, in both memos and statements the agencies have stated they won’t enforce the federal law against individuals who comply with their state’s law — but they might (heavy emphasis on might) prosecute city staff who would implement and enforce such zoning.

Regardless of how likely the odds are a lawsuit would ever be filed, the councilors did not seem comfortable violating federal law.

But at the same time, the ban was not required to comply with federal law. The council could have simply ignored the issue and let the moratorium expire. Realistically, if this had occurred, collective gardens could have popped up throughout the city, if they haven’t already, with the argument that the gardens fell under a type of zoning which is already in the municipal code. The city would have been left with the option of either a lengthy and costly legal process to shut them down, or they could close their eyes, so to speak, and pretend it wasn’t going on.

The councilors might have felt neither of these options were appropriate. With the expiration of the moratorium approaching, the council didn’t have the typical amount of time to discuss it, which explains how it was able to make a decision more quickly than usual. To have extended it could have opened the city up to legal challenges.

The ban sends the message, intentional or not, that if the city eventually allows collective gardens, it will be permitted solely through a zoning ordinance, not through a legal loophole. And based on statements made by council members, this will probably not happen until medical marijuana is reclassified as a Schedule II drug by the DEA, which requires approval by the Federal Food and Drug Administration, or until the state Legislature approves legislation such as Senate Bill 6265,  which didn’t make it out of committee. The bill would have forbidden cities from adopting an ordinance precluding the possibility of collective gardens.

Whether one cares to agree or disagree with the council’s decision, it’s ironic that they acted in a swift and definite manner that leaves little room for confusion as to their intentions. The same cannot be said for other levels of government when it comes to medical marijuana.