GREENFIELD — Patriot Care has cleared the last local hurdle to selling recreational marijuana in the city.
The company that runs the medical marijuana dispensary in the former American Legion building at 7 Legion Ave. was granted a special permit to sell recreational pot in the same space, following a unanimous vote by the Zoning Board of Appeals Monday afternoon.
In reality, the process has been much a formality because a city cannot deny an existing medical marijuana facility the right to also do recreational, as long as it meets state and local regulations.
That doesn’t mean the Zoning Board didn’t give Patriot Care’s application a thorough review.
Meeting Monday midday with Patriot Care’s CEO Bob Mayerson and lead spokesman Dennis Kunian and Greenfield’s Director of Planning and Development Eric Twarog, the Zoning Board briefly explored its legal grounds to grant this permit given a perceived conflict between state and federal law.
Summarizing legal advice from the city’s attorney, board Chairman Mark Maloney said members were told they were on good grounds to grant this permit, despite recreational marijuana not being legal on the national level. Maloney said he didn’t think the lawyer “quite got the question being asked.”
Maloney had wanted clarification from the lawyer on what to do when someone like himself and the rest of the board take an oath when assuming a position in city government that has them pledging to uphold local, state and federal laws, yet there is conflict between those laws. He indicated he wasn’t sure which level might trump the other in this case, but the attorney’s advice didn’t address this question head on, and instead suggested the federal law doesn’t necessarily apply here.
“The answer he gave us was adequate for us, but again, I think a lot of people were confused that people would even ask that question or take their oath seriously — but that’s just the world we live in,” Maloney said.
Member Andrew Killeen reiterated this, too, was his initial hesitation with readily granting a permit for the business owners, who the board sees as very responsible. He said he felt “satisfied” by the legal response.
The permit was granted on a condition that the business’s recreational hours be the same as those approved for the medical dispensary. Patriot Care operates 9 a.m. to 7 p.m., seven days a week and will maintain those hours if and when it receives a recreational license from the state.
Mayerson said he’s “very pleased with the board’s decision today.” The final decision whether Patriot Care will get a recreational licenses sits in the hands of the state’s Cannabis Control Commission and Mayerson couldn’t commit to a timeline on when it can open.
Until then, Patriot Care will continue serving the community’s medical marijuana needs.
“We’re looking forward to spending a lot of time out here,” Kunian said.
You can reach Joshua Solomon
at: jsolomon@recorder.com
413-772-0261, ext. 264