By Beth David, Editor
The Fairhaven Selectboard decided at a special meeting on Monday, 2/12, not to put any questions on the April 2 ballot about marijuana-related issues.
The board needed to decide on wording by February 23, if it wanted to place something on the ballot, hence the need for a special meeting.
Town Counsel Thomas Crotty went over a few different possibilities and some reasoning behind why the board might want to act.
Although there is a moratorium in place until the end of the year, it was not voted on in a town-wide vote, said Mr. Crotty, so it could be challenged by someone who wanted to open a retail pot-shop in town. However, he added, the idea of the moratorium was recommended by the state attorney general’s office, so, he mused, presumably AG Maura Healey, would back the ban that 129 municipalities have instituted. Most did not hold town-wide votes. In Fairhaven, Town Meeting voted for it.
“I think she would turn tail and run,” said Selectboard member Daniel Freitas. “She’s extremely political.”
The bulk of the conversation on Monday revolved around whether or not voters who approved the legalization of marijuana in November of 2016, knew what they were voting for. Did they realize they were voting for the possibility of retail shops in town?
Selectboard Chairperson Bob Espindola read from the statute to point out that the “yes” vote was to allow local officials to institute regulations, not a flat-out vote for retail shops.
Other possibilities included zoning bylaws changes.
The town has an overlay district for the medical marijuana dispensary, but not for recreational shops.
Planning Board Chairperson Wayne Hayward cautioned against rushing into bylaws changes.
The state will begin taking applications on April 1, but with the moratorium in place until December of 2018, any applicants would have to wait until then to open up a place.
Meanwhile, the town should be getting regulations in place, including whether or not marijuana cafes would be allowed, where people could consume on the premises; if regular restaurants would be allowed to add marijuana edibles to their menus; where retail shops would be allowed, and a host of other possible regulations.
The town is also allowed by state law to impose up to 3% in local taxes on all sales.
The crux of the worry was: Will someone come in and get a license before the regulations are in place, successfully challenge the moratorium, and then be allowed to set up shop in an undesirable place.
As it is, the town can either ban the retail shops entirely, by town-wide vote, or limit it to the two that the state has said the town can have by a formula based on the number of liquor stores in a municipality. As of now, there is not limit because the town has not voted. Town Meeting can vote to limit it to two, but only a town-wide vote can ban retail entirely. Even then, it still has to be ratified by Town Meeting. It takes two votes, one town-wide and one at Town Meeting to completely ban the shops. That is because Fairhaven voted for the legalization of marijuana in 2016.
In any case, the existing Registered Marijuana Dispensary (RMD) in Fairhaven that dispenses medical marijuana, would have priority to open a recreational shop.
“I’m not sure there will be a big line out the door,” with people signing up, said Mr. Crotty.
If there is a quick application, then it’s a “race to the courthouse,” said Mr. Crotty, to stop it.
The biggest danger of putting the moratorium to a town-wide vote, is if the voters decide not to uphold it. If that happens, and the one in place is challenged, it has a better chance of getting shot down by the court.
In the end, the board decided to leave things as they are. The town will most likely need a special town meeting in the fall to adopt the new regulations that the Planning Board will create.
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