Town Meeting Puts Hold on Medical Marijuana Dispensaries

There won’t be any medical marijuana dispensaries in Arlington for at least another year.

Town Meeting members voted Monday to put a moratorium on the dispensaries, delaying them from coming until after the town’s 2014 Town Meeting next April.

The measure, Article 8, passed convincingly by a voice vote. The delay is meant to give the town more time to understand all of the nuances of the dispensary application process, Town Manager Adam Chapdelaine said recently.

For a simple guide on the issue: 8 Things to Know About Medical Marijuana Dispensaries in Arlington

The other medical marijuana dispensary article on the 2013 Warrant, Article 7, received 114 “Yes” votes to 72 “No” votes – however, it failed to get the necessary two-thirds majority to pass.

It would have zoned the dispensaries so that they would have only been allowed in the town’s central business district (B5, shown in red on the attached map). The zoning would not have gone into effect until after the moratorium and could have been modified at next April’s Town Meeting.

Chapdelaine said the zoning was intended to keep the dispensaries in the public eye. Without any zoning in place by the end of the moratorium, the dispensaries could potentially go in any open retail space in town.

A few Town Meeting members raised concerns with having the dispensaries in this central business district, which runs along Mass. Ave. from about Water Street to Alton Street (it does not include Broadway plaza).

James Doherty, of Precinct 2, said this area is often heavily populated by youths, including Arlington Catholic High School students.

Michael Ruderman, a Precinct 9 Town Meeting member who lives on Alton Street, said he thought neighbors should be engaged in the process before any zone is selected. Paul Schlichtman, also of Precinct 9, said he didn’t think it made sense for a dispensary to potentially be across the street from a drug rehabilitation center – Right Turn.

The articles were inserted by the Arlington Redevelopment Board. In addition to any zoning, the dispensaries will also be subject to environmental review and need permits from the town and state boards of health.

A similar moratorium was passed in Burlington and upheld by the state attorney general. Outright bans in communities such as Wakefield and Reading were overturned by the attorney general.