Pot companies reaching out to Millville

At least 3 prospective applicants have approached the town interested in the town’s 2 available marijuana licenses

MILLVILLE — Just three months after special town meeting voters approved a marijuana bylaw establishing zoning requirements and other local regulations for marijuana retail sales and cultivation, there are already potential applicants knocking on Millville’s door interested in setting up those businesses in town.

There are at least three prospective applicants who have approached the town interested in the two available marijuana licenses in Millville, including Marty’s Fine Wines and Spirits on Buxton Street, which is considering applying for both licenses for retail sales and or cultivation. Marty’s Fine Wines has three other stores in Hopkinton, Allston and Newton.

The town has also been contacted by Lisa Cadan of Bristol, representing a company called Rhode Island Medical Marijuana Cultivation Company; and Bay State Canna Holdings, LLC, a company based in Western Massachusetts.

Town officials haven’t officially met with any of the prospective applicants and there have been no definitive plans or applications submitted, but there have been several in- quiries expressing an interest in doing business in town, including from Cadan, who has requested a sit-down meeting with the selectmen on Aug. 6.

But opening a marijuana retail store or cultivation facility in Millville isn’t likely to happen overnight because getting a marijuana business license is a multi-step process, both on the local and state level. Among other things, prospective marijuana businesses would be required to secure a host community agreement and special permit from the town before they can apply for a license

“This is a brand new industry and we are committee to doing what is best for the town but in a way that will also allow a business to thrive The selectmen want to make sure that public safety is on board with this and that the town does everything it can to mitigate an adverse affects, such as traffic and security.”

—Millville Town Administrator Jennifer M. Callahan

from the state.

In April, Millville town voters approved a new marijuana bylaw and zoning requirements for marijuana retail sales and cultivation businesses. The bylaw encompasses both medical marijuana businesses and recreational marijuana businesses, neither of which the town had zoned for prior to the special town meeting.

The bylaw allows all uses – cultivation, medical use dispensaries, product manufacturers, recreational retailers, distribution facilities and product testing facilities – only in the town’s commercial business district and only by special permit.

The bylaw also limits the number of recreational marijuana retailers permitted in town, in accordance with state law.

Millville’s bylaw replaces both the moratoriums on medical marijuana, which expired in 2014, and the temporary moratorium on recreational marijuana that is set to expired on Dec. 31, with new language explaining in detail what is and what isn’t allowed should an applicant choose to set up shop in Millville.

Millville Town Administrator Jennifer M. Callahan said because the town supported the legalization of recreational pot statewide more than a year ago, the selectmen wanted voters to have their say on the local marijuana bylaw.

“Because it is such a big issue, we wanted to put this out to the townspeople,” she said. “As a result, the bylaw article was overwhelmingly approved in April so now it’s a matter of following the bylaw if and when the time comes to entertain applications.”

“This is a brand new industry and we are committee to doing what is best for the town but in a way that will also allow a business to thrive,” she added. “The selectmen want to make sure that public safety is on board with this and that the town does everything it can to mitigate an adverse affects, such as traffic and security. I think the feeling of the board is that we want to do this the best way we can.”

According to the Millville bylaw, applicants would be required to:

• Obtain a license from the state.

• Have control of the site either by deed, purchase and sale agreement or a valid license.

• Negotiate a “host agreement” with the selectmen, naming all individuals involved with the facility.

• Obtain a special permit from the Planning Board, which is non-transferable.

• Submit a site plan to include all security measures for both employees and premises and against criminal activity, lighting, fencing, gates, alarms, parking, signage and landscaping.

While the state provides a level of regulation on the sale and dispensation of marijuana, the special permit from the town adds an additional level of local protection. For example, if the Planning Board feels that the application is not consistent with the bylaw, the special permit will not be granted.

The state Cannabis Control Commission (CCC) has created 12 types of licenses for adult use marijuana ranging from cultivation and processing to social consumption. The CCC has the authority to adopt regulations and issue licenses for commercial production and sale of marijuana much like the Alcoholic Beverages Control Commission for alcohol

This week, the CCC was reviewing seven cultivation, retailer, and manufacturer licenses for Alternative Therapies Group, Inc. and New England Treatment Access.

The state has already approved licenses for cultivation in Milford and retail in Leicester.

So far, the state has yet to approve any licenses for testing laboratories and recreational marijuana sales cannot begin in the state until that happens. All marijuana needs to be tested for contaminants at the labs before it can be sold to the public.

Recreational sales were supposed to begin July 1, but it could be at least several more weeks before the first ones begin operating.

Meanwhile, nearly 200 communities in Massachusetts continue to have either outright bans or moratoriums on recreational marijuana businesses within their borders. Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey recently ruled that temporary moratoriums – designed to give towns time to set up local regulations, such as zoning – could be extended through June 2019.

Marijuana is a 21st century cash crop and Millville, which is in the midst of a financial crisis after the defeat of a property tax override in June, appears cautiously open to capitalizing on legal weed, which is an all-cash business. In addition to the maximum 3 percent fee in host community agreements, municipalities under the law can collect taxes of up to 3 percent on recreational marijuana sales.

In a small rural town like Millville, which has no commercial development or industry to speak of, a single pot shop could be a major taxpayer.

But Callahan says it s too early to say how the town would benefit financially from the burgeoning industry.

“We don’t know because we haven’t seen any proposals yet,” she said,