WILTON — The Planning Board and Select Board held a joint workshop meeting to review proposed changes to the town’s Adult Use and Medical Marijuana Stores, Cultivation Facilities, Manufacturing Facilities, and Testing Facilities Ordinance, approved by residents at the annual Town Meeting on Aug. 17.
“One of the major points that we did, is we took out all the numbers and limits,” Planning Board Member Michael Parker said. “So there’s unlimited retail establishment stores for both medical and adult use marijuana. There is unlimited cultivating, unlimited manufacturing facilities. We took all of those limit numbers out because they’re just very unwieldy.”
The Wilton Planning Board had been tasked with developing the town’s marijuana ordinance last year and based the majority of the town’s regulations off of Farmington’s marijuana ordinance. Wilton is now looking at Portland’s most recent marijuana ordinance reform passed by voters on Nov. 4, removing marijuana retail license limits.
Parker said that the Planning Board was now adopting a libertarian approach, allowing the marketplace to weed out excess marijuana businesses rather than the town imposing limits.
“The reality is, people were afraid. We didn’t want Wilton to become the marijuana capital of Maine, but when you look, there’s only so many empty storefronts and empty places of business that could be utilized in this town,” Parker said. “So I don’t think we’re going to be overrun, and I think it’s more likely that some of these areas, the marketplace will rule with time and some of them will close down.”
Board members also deliberated the concept of eliminating permits on cultivation facilities where a single licensee could lease out growing space to other cultivators.
The Planning Board considered classifying a recent cultivator applicant and warehouse owner with a facility license to save on Wilton’s limited licenses and to bring in more money to the town.
This proposal faced opposition by the warehouse owner and the three other growers during the Planning Board’s site visit. One of the growers also later opposed the Select Board’s lack of action to approve his license due to the board’s intent to conserve grow licenses before residents approved ordinance changes.
Parker suggested that only individual growers would be licensed to avoid such predicaments in the future and to allow the town more inspection rights.
“By doing [permitting] the growers, we know what’s happening at each site and who is doing it,” Parker said. “Plus, we give ourselves the ability to actually go in and inspect the site.”
Members also discussed implementing a nondisclosure agreement that would prohibit the Code Enforcement Officer (CEO) from revealing or exchanging information of other marijuana businesses during site visits and inspections.
Selectperson Tom Saviello asked for clarification as to whether Planning Board members were legally allowed to participate in-person at the CEO’s site visits.
Adopting more concise language surrounding the ordinance’s description of odor complaints was also deliberated.
“The odor cannot cross the property line,” Parker said.
Selectpersons Gwendolyn Doak and Saviello suggested implementing a clear designation as to where funds accrued through licensing fees would benefit the town such as recovery programs or education. The designation of funds would be a decision made by the Select Board.
Next steps include the Planning Board voting on ordinance amendments and the Select Board establishing a date for a special town meeting so residents can vote on the proposed changes.
Doak reminded board members that Wilton’s marijuana ordinance is a working document that will likely face additional amendments in the future.
“The laws at the state level are changing, this is not set and done. This is something that is going to be an ongoing process,” Doak said.
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