CONWAY — After months of deliberation, the Planning Board has approved Roaring Glen Farms LLC’s special permit amendment to operate as a recreational marijuana cultivation facility.
The Planning Board had tentatively approved the amendment at its Dec. 16 meeting, but was awaiting a review on the language from town counsel before officially approving the amendment. The approval marks the end of an amendment process that began June 17 and green-lights Roaring Glen Farms to start seeking co-op members to begin operations.
“Dec. 30 we got a response from town counsel on the proposed amendment we made last meeting,” associate Planning Board member Joe Strzegowski, who was a voting member on the matter, explained during a meeting Thursday. “They’re very small changes from what you saw at the last meeting.”
The company, which was issued a special permit in March 2020 to operate a marijuana cultivation facility at 40 Whately Glen Road, had been seeking a waiver or amendment to its special permit to bypass section 11.5R of the town’s bylaws since the business is seeking to operate as a cooperative farm.
The bylaw states a special permit will expire if more than 10% of ownership of the farm is transferred. Currently, the farm is owned by John Moore and Lisa Gustavsen, who own 51% and 49% of the farm, respectively, but portions of that ownership would be transferred as people sign on as members of the co-op.
In the now approved amendment, the Planning Board recognizes the “unusual and unique burden” put on Roaring Glen Farms because of its operation as a cooperative farm. At Dec. 2’s Planning Board meeting, attorney Tom Lesser, who is representing Roaring Glen Farms, said jump-starting a cooperative business is an expensive proposition.
“The reality is that starting a cannabis cultivation business is a very expensive proposition,” Lesser said. “There are incredible regulations concerning security, concerning going from seed to retail in terms of every plant of marijuana, and all that adds up to a lot of money, which an individual — unless they have millions of dollars — cannot undertake.”
As a result of the “unusual and unique burden,” the Planning Board and Roaring Glen Farms agreed to terms that the farm shall supply the town “annually on or before Dec. 31 each calendar year” with a certificate of compliance from the state Cannabis Control Commission as well as the “names and total number of direct and indirect owners of the cooperative.”
The long-running deliberations stemmed from the Planning Board having concerns about the town’s role in allowing who can become an investor or member of a co-op. At a Dec. 16 meeting, however, Strzegowski and the Planning Board loosened their stance and shifted their focus to making sure the farm continued to operate in the role of a cooperative.
“It’s not about the character of the people, we’re going to leave that to the state,” Strzegowski said. “The Planning Board needs to be sure the client and the farm understands they must continue to operate as a co-op. My proposal is based on trying to put more teeth into the co-op.”
With the town counsel-reviewed amendment in hand, the Planning Board unanimously approved Roaring Glen Farms’ permit.
During Thursday’s meeting, the Planning Board also approached the subject of potentially revising section 11.5R of the town’s bylaws in the future because of the problems that came up in dealing with Roaring Glen Farms. Planning Board Chair Beth Girshman said the bylaw presents a challenge when dealing with cooperative businesses.
“Particularly it was a problem for cooperatives,” Girshman said by phone Friday. “We’re just going to investigate how it is throughout the rest of the state.”
Chris Larabee can be reached at clarabee@recorder.com or
413-930-4081.