Simsbury's Pot Store Question Will Be Decided At The Polls

SIMSBURY, CT — With the ratification this week of a petition putting the question of cannibis sales on the election ballot, Simsbury's allowance of pot stores in town is now up to the voters.

The Simsbury Board of Selectmen Monday finalized that at their regular meeting, voting unanimously to accept the petition and send the issue to the polls.

Simsbury First Selectman Wendy Mackstutis said the petition was submitted by local resident Tom Turner, who gathered enough signatures to let voters have the final say.

The question — Shall the sale of recreational marijuana be allowed in the Town of Simsbury? — will be on the Nov. 7 municipal election ballot.

"This was a topic of much discussion – at the zoning commission meetings and hearings and at the board of selectmen meetings and hearing," "wrote Mackstutis in a report to selectmen.

"Having this on the ballot on November 7th, 2023, puts the final question on this topic out to all our residents."

Last February, selectmen voted to extend a moratorium on retail pot stores, which were legalized by the state at the start of the year, into 2024.

At issue is whether Simsbury wants the added tax revenue and business development associated with a, now legal, product or is Simsbury wary of the implications easy access to pot could pose on members of the community.

Over the winter, the topic of pot stores in Simsbury divided the public with many testifying at public hearings for both sides of the equation.

Mackstutis told fellow selectmen Monday that Turner's petition need 10 percent of the voter population signed.

"We know that people were out there working super hard to make that happen. And so we thank everyone who did that and they took part of the democratic process to get that on the ballot," she said.

From Feb. 28: 'Amid Division, Simsbury Selectmen OK Retail Pot Moratorium'