WOBURN – The City Council recently passed a zoning amendment that will allow up to two recreational cannabis stores to open their doors within an industrial district by Presidential and Commerce Way.
During their latest gathering in City Hall last week, the elected officials in a 7-to-2 vote endorsed the legislative package that will allow for retail pot sales within Woburn’s sole IP2 zone and institute a new local 3 percent tax surcharge on cannabis products sold within the community.
Because Mayor Scott Galvin initiated the months-long debate over the future of Woburn’s 2017 ban on recreational pot stores, both pieces of legislation are essentially assured to be signed into law by the city executive.
Voting against the zoning change last week were Ward 1 Councilor Joanne Campbell and Ward 2’s Richard Gately, who have both railed against the legislative package since it was first introduced by City Council President Michael Concannon on behalf of Galvin in May.
Though retail pot sales within the city will technically be limited to persons aged 21 and older, as stipulated by state law, Campbell argued that children and teens will nonetheless get their hands on some of the cannabis products being sold in the city.
The Ward 1 Councilor, who in 2017 led efforts to enact a zoning ban forbidding recreational marijuana stores from opening within Woburn, also insisted that by sanctioning pot sales, the city was essentially condoning and removing some of the stigma around marijuana use.
“Unfortunately, some parents are buying these items and children are getting a hold of them and getting sick,” said Campbell, referring to situations where children she knows have gotten ill after ingesting marijuana edibles, or food products containing cannabis.
“What’s the rush to change the zoning law? Let’s bring this question to the voters of Woburn,” the Ward 1 councilor later urged her colleagues. “Let us not make money on the backs of our children, because that’s exactly what we’re doing.”
Though many opponents of sanctioning retail pot sales have voiced similar concerns, many of the City Council members who backed the legislation did so after concluding that public safety will actually benefit from the change by providing responsible adults with the opportunity to obtain safe and contaminate-free sources of marijuana.
Other hesitant supporters of the legislation, like Alderman at-large and former Woburn Police Chief Robert Ferullo, voiced their support of the proposals after hearing from current Police Chief Robert Rufo.
To the surprise of many, Rufo, who served for over a decade as Woburn’s top narcotics detective and also headed up the Southern Middlesex Regional Drug Task Force, has come out as a reluctant supporter of recreational cannabis stores.
Last week, Rufo echoed his previous sentiments that recreational sales in Woburn will reduce tragic episodes where residents are fatally overdosing on pot laced with synthetic opioids like fentanyl.
According to Ferullo, given Rufo’s expertise and status as a nationally-renowned drug expert, he felt compelled to accept his successor’s recommendation that the zoning change be enacted.
“We lost the fight on marijuana. They legalized it and what we need to do now is move foward,” conceded the alderman at-large, who described himself as an opponent of both recreational and medical marijuana sales in the state. “I guarantee you that when this passes, the city will be safer.”
“[Chief Rufo] is recognized across the Commonwealth and he’s nationally recognized for his efforts to fight drugs. While I was playing kickball with kids as a DARE officer, Chief Rufo was kicking in doors and doing the real work. I believe him and my faith is with him,” Ferullo later remarked.
Technically, Woburn is still likely months away from having a recreational marijuana shop open within the community.
Though Sanctuary Medicinals, Woburn’s sole medical marijuana dispensary, sits within the IP2 district and is considered to be a prime contender for one of two retail sales licenses being made available within the city, any business looking to take advantage of the new zoning regs will have to apply for a special permit from the council.
Additionally, the zoning regulations being implemented also call for petitioners to ink a so-called host community agreement with the City of Woburn, which is akin to the mitigation or development impact agreements that are commonly presented by private developers who require zoning changes to facilitate large-scale building projects. Lastly, any petitioner looking to take advantage of Woburn’s new zoning rules will have to meet a multitude of application and licensing requirements controlled by the Mass. Cannabis Control Commission.
