Medical Marijuana Dispensary Proposal In Brick Postponed

BRICK, NJ -- The Brick Township Board of Adjustment has carried a hearing on the proposal for a medical marijuana dispensary at a site of a former bank in Brick because of the size of the crowd.

The hearing on the application by Jersey Shore Therapeutic Health Care, which had been continued to Monday from its initial hearing on Oct. 10, has been carried to an unspecified date in January 2019 so the hearing can be held in a larger venue.

The municipal courtroom was standing room only with people standing in the hallway at 7 p.m. when Board Chairman Harvey Langer called the hearing to order.

But before the hearing could proceed, zoning board attorney John Miller urged the board to carry the application because there were people standing in the hallway, on the grounds that it interfered with their constitutional right to hear the proceedings and be heard.

John Paul Doyle, the attorney for 385 Adamston LLC, the company proposing Jersey Shore Therapeutic Health Care, spoke against that suggestion, saying postponing the hearing was harming only the applicant. Initially the Jersey Shore Therapeutic Health Care had until Nov. 30 to secure approval for its proposed site; however, because the state has not yet finished reviewing the 146 applications for six new dispensary licenses (more than 30,000 pages of documentation have to be reviewed by the state), that Nov. 30 deadline does not appear to be an issue.

Edward Liston, an attorney representing four families objecting to the application, spoke urging the board to follow Miller's advice.

Brick Township building codes official Daniel Newman was called in to count how many people were in attendance to see if it exceeded the capacity of the room, which was 238 people. Newman's count said the attendance did not, and as those standing in the hallway were ushered into the room, Doyle prepared to proceed with the hearing.

Miller, however, said the likelihood that some who had been in attendance left put the zoning board at risk of legal action that could result in overturning whatever decision it made.

While Doyle continued to urge the board to move forward, Liston said the outcome will likely wind up in court regardless. Four families that live within 200 feet of the former Ocean First bank have vocally opposed the use of it for the dispensary site, expressing concerns particularly about safety and security.

Those opposing the plan have repeatedly said they do not object to the idea of medical marijuana or a dispensary, but only to the proposed location.

The former Ocean First bank on Adamston Road is next to the Veterans of Foreign Wars post and just down the street from an auto body shop, but it also is across the street from a residential neighborhood. The back of the property backs up to the the Edwin Forsythe Wildlife Refuge.

The security plans for the site were expected to be the focus of Monday's hearing.

When the board members unanimously agreed to continue the hearing, those opposing the application began to applaud and cheer, prompting Doyle to say, "see, this is all they cared about."

Afterward, Doyle said Jersey Shore Therapeutic Health Care will continue to pursue the zoning board approval.

"Regardless of the date, we will continue to fight for this approval," Doyle said. "We're going to move as quickly as we can and as the board will allow."

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