Despite opposing the legalization of marijuana before Colorado voters overwhelmingly approved it in 2012, the mayor of Denver now says he is “proud” of the legal cannabis industry in his city.
“I am very proud of the industry that came to the table and went to work,” Denver Mayor Michael Hancock said in an interview with Inc. Magazine. “The industry has investors and businessmen and women who are very legit. They’re putting their hard-earned money, many retirements and investments on the line for this industry."
Two weeks before Election Day in 2012, Hancock called marijuana a “gateway drug” and said that if legalization were enacted, the city would “lose our attractiveness to companies, employers who want to come to our state. Tourism is the number-one industry for the City of Denver, number two in the state of Colorado, and I believe that sector will be disproportionately harmed with the perception that Denver is the marijuana capital.”
