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Cannabis plant. Photo By Shutterstock
WOODLAND—Officials with Woodland Township were surprised to learn during a March 26 Woodland Township Committee workshop meeting that a land acquisition transaction had not yet gone through, as of that meeting, for a property on Route 72 slated for a cannabis enterprise, and that an application to obtain a cannabis business operating license from the state had also not yet been filed, despite months of anticipation that has led to repeated requests of the Woodland Township Committee to pass an ordinance permitting cannabis establishments and establishing the appropriate zoning.
Apparent confusion about the circumstances led Township Administrator and Clerk Maryalice Brown to make the unprecedented move of phoning the prospective cannabis business owner, “Milan,” also the current owner of Woodland Discount Liquors on Route 72, while the meeting was in progress.
As previously reported by this newspaper, cannabis enterprises cannot operate out of liquor stores under state law, and thus the Woodland Discount Liquors proprietor has been eyeing the vacant Joe Bell’s Bar for the cannabis enterprise, with the former bar reportedly “two doors down” from his existing establishment.
Brown described during the March 26 workshop session that there was “urgency” for the township committee to pass a proposed cannabis ordinance scheduled for a second reading and public hearing during the ensuing regular meeting, which would allow cannabis enterprises in the HB zone, or the highway commercial area, comprising Route 72 in Woodland.
Officials already had tossed an initial version introduced last November, which did not specify permissible operating locations.
“I think the urgency is more his decision on whether or not to buy the store, the property, than the license itself,” Brown told the committee.
(It would not make economic sense for anyone to purchase the parcel intending to use it for cannabis operations if it is not a permitted use in Woodland via a local ordinance.)
Mayor William “Billy” DeGroff then acknowledged, “I think the sale is dependent on that (the ordinance passing), because he wants to redo the whole place and make it a bigger building.”
Township Solicitor William Burns, however, declared, “there is no urgency behind this anymore” because “if he doesn’t own it, he can’t put an application in, because you have to identify the location.”
Brown, however, after making telephone contact with Milan in her office, relayed to the committee while he was still on the phone line that “he is signing the contract to purchase the property next week.”
Burns responded for the township clerk to ask about any “contingencies” on the purchase of the property.
Brown returned to the committee contending the prospective buyer “was going to wait until tonight when the ordinance got approved, if the ordinance gets approved” to enter into a transaction, and additionally, he had planned to see Brown “about what he has to do to move forward to get zoning approval.”
An apparently surprised Committeewoman Donna Mull remarked, “He hasn’t even gotten a license from the state yet!”
Brown ultimately put Burns on the telephone as the revelation that the property slated for the cannabis enterprise was not yet owned by Milan, as of the time of the meeting, had left the governing body with a lot of questions.
Burns, upon his return from the call, told the committee that the prospective buyer “doesn’t have an attorney right now,” but did speak to one at some point named “Mickey” and “may follow up” with that person “depending on what happens tonight.”
“He hasn’t done anything at all with respect to the state application process,” Burns reported to the committee. “Based on that, he hasn’t done anything. He really doesn’t have any basis of knowledge to know how long it is going to take. There is no contract on the property, as it is right now. There is an oral offer accepted. …
“And he hopes that the contract gets drafted and is sent out by Friday. And (he hopes) he has a signed agreement by next week. And he told Maryalice that before he does that (signs the contract), he wants to know what happens tonight.”
Discussion on proposing a cannabis ordinance had commenced when it was said that the state wanted to see support from the municipality for the prospective cannabis enterprise. But officials apparently realized at this workshop session that the ordinance didn’t necessarily need to pass for the governing body to approve a “resolution of support.”
But Burns recognized “there is nothing to pass a resolution of support” for because Milan, at the time of the meeting, was simply a prospective buyer and had not filed an application with the state.
Woodland officials talked about making further amendments to the proposed ordinance before passing it, and that is how the whole discussion commenced about passing the measure with urgency, with officials believing they didn’t necessarily need to pass the measure immediately, but rather could take additional time now to make any changes that they felt were necessary.
“So, you can go one of two ways now,” Burns counseled the governing body. “You can either pass it in its current form tonight and then immediately begin the amendment process, or you can hold off. It is up to you.”
DeGroff called on the committee to “do the ordinance” so that the prospective buyer “can move forward with the building, and purchase the property.”
Some of the additional amendments proposed for a later date are refining the operating hours for cannabis establishments, requiring a closing time of 9 or 10 p.m. depending on the day, and requiring an initial non-refundable licensing fee to be paid to the township of $1,500 with an annual renewal fee of $2,500 for retail outlets, while any cultivators, manufacturers or wholesalers would be charged $2,500 initially and $5,000 for any renewal.
One member of the public called on the governing body to go higher on the licensing fees, contending “their money is the tightest in the beginning” and such enterprises are “spending money hand over fist” in opening.
But DeGroff shot back, “My argument is we don’t have very many businesses in this town right now” and “I don’t want to chase one away.”
“We are definitely going to make some money,” the mayor assured the resident if the township maintains the fee structure it is proposing to put in place.
The cannabis ordinance passed on second reading during the committee’s regular meeting that immediately followed the workshop session, with DeGroff saying the next step for the proposed business on Route 72 is now in Milan’s hands.
But one caveat acknowledged in this whole thing by Burns is that the ordinance passed March 26 currently has a restriction of one license being available per cannabis business licensing class (there are five of them set by the state), and until Milan signs a contract for the parcel and files an application, there is a possibility “someone else comes in and jumps (in front of) him.”
The resident who opined on the fees pointed out there are companies out there already with “multiple, multiple licenses,” though he believed it is “unlikely” that any of them would beat Milan to it, with Brown noting, “They still would need to find a location.”
That licensing limitation, however, is something that led to a lone objection being raised by resident Jane Donoghue during the ordinance’s actual public hearing.
“You are only allowing one per class,” Donoghue said. “That is a monopoly. That goes against all fair trade, all fair commerce. … You are creating an unfair market.”
Otherwise, Donoghue declared, “I don’t care if we have cannabis in the town or not.”
”}]] WOODLAND—Officials with Woodland Township were surprised to learn during a March 26 Woodland Township Committee workshop meeting that a land acquisition transaction had not yet gone through, as of that meeting, for a property on Route 72 slated for a cannabis enterprise, and that an application to obtain a cannabis business operating license from the Read More
