Framingham Council Supports CPA — With Marijuana Caveat

FRAMINGHAM, MA — The Framingham City Council is asking voters to approve a ballot question about adopting the Community Preservation Act, but with one interesting caveat.

District 2 Councilor Cesar Stewart-Morales brought the resolution to Council that "urges the city’s voters to adopt the Community Preservation Act by voting favorably on Ballot Question 3."

But before a vote on the resolution Tuesday night, Chair George King Jr. added a new part that asks Mayor Yvonne Spicer's administration to offset the cost of the CPA with revenue from marijuana businesses.

If adopted, most property owners will pay a 1 percent surcharge on a portion of property taxes to fund the CPA. Resolutions do not carry a mandate, but King said the language around using marijuana revenue could give the Council leverage in future budget deliberations.

Under state law, communities are allowed to extract impact fees from recreational and medical marijuana businesses. Temescal Wellness and Cultivate are the city's two operating marijuana retailers, but others are set to open in the coming years.

The Council adopted Stewart-Morales' resolution with King's amendment unanimously.

Correction: An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated that the 1 percent surcharge is paid on the value of a property. The surcharge is paid based on property taxes.