WELLS (WGME) — Voters in Wells will soon decide whether to allow recreational marijuana sales, joining 76 other towns in Maine that have already approved the practice.
This will be the second time Wells voters tackle this issue. After marijuana use was legalized across the state, Wells voted to only allow medical marijuana on a ballot question in 2017. But this June, voters will reconsider the issue of recreational marijuana.
Joel Pepin, co-founder of JAR Cannabis Company, operates seven dispensaries across the state and is now planning an expansion to Wells. The only question remaining is whether the dispensary will be medical or recreational.
Pepin is pushing for the recreational option, arguing that adult-use shops are subject to stricter regulations.
“Medical cannabis isn’t tested in the state or Maine, and recreational cannabis is,” Pepin said. “So I think from a consumer’s perspective, there’s a little bit more confidence.”
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Wells already has two medical marijuana dispensaries, and Pepin secured an application to open the third. But when he asked if the permit could change to allow a recreational dispensary, the town’s Select Board decided to let voters make the final decision.
“We’re not taking a position on whether cannabis is good or bad,” Wells Selectman Scott DeFelice said. “This is a decision the community really needs to make.”
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“I don’t think it’s going to cause any big problems. I mean, it’s regulated. I think it’s great,” Wells resident Arthur Donoghue said.
The ballot question would keep the town’s cap of three marijuana retailers in Wells. But still, some voters are concerned that allowing recreational sales could eventually lead to more dispensaries.
“I’m going to vote no because I lived in a town in Maine that voted yes, and they appeared on every corner,” one voter said. “The places where you could buy recreational marijuana sort of invaded the town.”
Voters will decide the issue on June 10.
