BREWSTER – After a ban of recreational marijuana sales in Brewster barely passed town meeting in December, the state attorney general’s office has disapproved the ban.
The ban came in the form of a bylaw that prohibited recreational marijuana distributors from opening in the town.
The attorney general’s office reviews bylaws from all municipalities within the Commonwealth to ensure they fall in line with state law.
The decision by the AG’s office stems from a recent ruling in Land Court involving the Town of Charlton. In that ruling, the Land Court had determined that since the town had been regulating marijuana facilities through zoning, it could not be overridden by way of a general bylaw.
“We’re pleased with the ruling, it’s the right ruling. The citizen’s petition was wrong from the beginning. You can’t use a general bylaw to overturn a zoning bylaw or zoning that is already in place, said Jim Borghesani, spokesman for Haven Center – a medical and recreational marijuana facility looking to open in Brewster.
“The Attorney General made the right decision on the merits. Although she didn’t rule on looking at new jobs and new revenue, she also created the right atmosphere to move forward with legal cannabis, get it out of the hands of the black market and give cannabis consumers that same protections that all other consumers enjoy.”
Attorney General Maura Healey determined that both Charlton and Brewster attempted to annul existing zoning regulations involving recreational marijuana establishments rather than adding them into the existing regulations.
Healey added that to make a change, zoning bylaws must go through a more stringent process than what’s allowed for amendments to general bylaws.
She said that while general bylaws only require a majority vote at town meeting to be changed, a zoning bylaw requires a two-thirds vote at town meeting. The town saw a 53-percent majority pass the December ban.
Borghesani says the AG’s ruling will lead to a positive economic impact for Brewster.
“What happens now is that everybody who is legally permitted to do so will start moving forward in Brewster. What also happens is a lot of new jobs will be created in Brewster and a lot of new tax revenue will be generated for Brewster,” he said.
“There are several companies who want to move forward with several aspects of legal cannabis in Brewster and that process will move forward.”
The proposed change to the zoning regulations would only permit the cultivation and medical sales of marijuana in permitted areas of town. The article would also call for the removal of all testing laboratories, retailers, manufacturers and other marijuana businesses, if passed.
By TIM DUNN, CapeCod.com News Center
About CapeCod.com NewsCenter
