NORWAY — Town Manager Dennis Lajoie said Wednesday that two of the three proposed medical marijuana grow facilities under Planning Board review will remain “in limbo” during the 180-day moratorium approved by voters Oct. 5.
The two are a facility by Rob Laverdiere of Lewiston at 1 Pikes Hill Road and one by Chris Getchell and Mike Gonzalez of Boston on dead-end East Street off Cottage Street. The proposals were brought to the Planning Board in August and September respectively, but have not been approved.
On the advice of the town attorney, Matt New of Auburn will be allowed to proceed with his facility at a former meat-processing plant at 12 King St., Lajoie said. After New presented his plan to the board in April, members voted in May to to allow him to proceed with the development. He got approval of his site plan but he does not have a certificate of occupancy.
Lajoie said Wednesday that the town attorney recommended officials allow New to continue with construction, because he has invested “a good amount of time and money into getting it ready.”
“She said to me that the case law out there shows that if a facility that is three-quarters of the way through the application process challenges us, we’d probably lose,” Lajoie said. “She said we should let them proceed.”
Lajoie said the other two projects are “technically in limbo right now.”
“The moratorium states that all medical marijuana projects under construction must cease, and that no building permits or certificates of occupancy can be issued,” Lajoie said. “The next step will be for us to form a committee and have some discussions about where we want to go. Until then, the other two projects will have to wait.”
Some residents and selectmen have expressed concern about having three facilities planned for downtown and presented in just five months.
This led Lajoie to contact the town attorney about drafting a six-month moratorium on medical marijuana grow facilities while the town looks into amending its land-use ordinance.
Norway Town Manager Dennis Lajoie said Wednesday that the town attorney recommended allowing the medical marijuana grow facility at 12 King St. to proceed with construction, despite a six-month medical marijuana moratorium passed Oct. 5. Owner Rob Laverdiere of Lewiston has 75 percent of the construction done and if he challenged the moratorium in court, the town would “probably lose,” Lajoie said.
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