Beverly Releases Draft Rules For Marijuana Shops

BEVERLY, MA -- Marijuana shops would be prohibited from opening within 500 feet of schools and limited to the central business and general commercial districts under proposed zoning rules in Beverly. The rules and a memorandum were released on the city's Website Wednesday. City Council has scheduled a public hearing to review and discuss the proposed amendments on Monday, November 5th, 2018, at 8:00 PM.

Beverly currently has a temporary ban on retail marijuana establishments as it considers permanent regulations. The new rules would cap the number of stores licensed to sell marijuana for recreational use and the city stands to collect a 3% local tax on marijuana sales.

The complete memorandum, as well as the proposed zoning amendments, are available on the city's Website.

While the state finalizes rules for recreational marijuana sales and begins the process of approving dispensaries, municipalities have been drafting rules on how to handle sales within city limits. Salem, for example, was one of the first North Shore communities to begin approving recreational marijuana businesses. Peabody, meanwhile, has banned recreational marijuana sales.

Bans are only permitted in cities where voters opposed the 2016 ballot question that ultimately legalized recreational marijuana sales in Massachusetts. Municipalities that make provisions to allow the sales are entitled to collect local taxes in addition to the state taxes on the products, and can regulate whether cannabis can be consumed on site.

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Dave Copeland can be reached at dave.copeland@patch.com or by calling 617-433-7851. Follow him on Twitter (@CopeWrites) and Facebook (/copewrites).