Seekonk Marijuana Shop Ban Up For Vote

SEEKONK, MA — Seekonk voters Monday night will decide on a proposed ban on recreational marijuana shops in town. The ban would last for 18 months. In November, Massachusetts voters approved a marijuana legalization initiative that allows for recreational pot shops in the Bay State sometime in 2018. But communities still have the authority to ban such shops. Last month, Falmouth voters approved a marijuana shop ban.

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Seekonk voters will decide on the ban proposal Monday night at Town Meeting, which starts at 7 p.m. at Seekonk High School. Voters will decide on more than a dozen proposals, including the annual town budget and pay packages for town workers and officials.

The marijuana shop ban proposal is Article 17, the final article in the Town Meeting warrant.

Town officials included this justification for the ban, which is included in the warrant language:

"The regulation of recreational marijuana raises novel legal, planning and public safety issues, and the Town needs time to study and consider the regulation of potential impact of the state regulations to local zoning and to undertake a planning process to consider amending the Zoning Bylaw regarding regulation of Recreational Marijuana Establishments. The Town intends to adopt a temporary moratorium on the use of land and structures in the Town of Recreational Marijuana Marijuana Establishments so as to allow sufficient time to address the effect of such structures and the uses in the Town and to exact bylaws in a consistent manner."

Should recreational marijuana shops be banned in Seekonk for 18 months? Share your opinion in the comments.

Related:

• Seekonk Town Meeting 2017: Full Warrant
• Falmouth Votes To Ban Marijuana Shops

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