A cannabis micro-cultivation facility for Custom Drive gained unanimous approval from the Zoning Commission at its July 15 meeting.

According to the application filed by Appleby Holdings, LLC, the facility, planned for 9 Custom Drive, will be used as cannabis grow space. It will not be open to the general public for cannabis sales. Instead, per the application, “Cannabis plants will be cultivated within the building. Plant propagation will be staggered in order to allow for continuous harvesting, trimming, and processing activities. A new harvest will occur approximately every three weeks, depending on plant genetics and flowering times.” The majority of the materials at the site would be used to make cannabis products.

According to the application, the facility will include 13 parking spaces, and a maximum of 12 employees will be on the property at one time.

The commission opened a public hearing over the proposal last month, and the meeting was continued until July to allow the applicants to file required paperwork. At the time, the commission had questions about the most up-to-date plans for the site, as the ones initially filed did not show the windows, roofing, and loading areas. Additionally, the commission asked for more details, such as the days and hours of operations and an estimate of how many vehicle trips will be made to and from the site each day.

Following a presentation by the applicants at the July 15 meeting to address the commission’s concerns, the commissioners unanimously voted to close the public hearing and approve the application.

As part of the condition of approval, Appleby Holdings must submit a manual detailing the filtration system and what provisions would be taken in the case of an odor mitigation failure.

The application from Appleby Holdings did not prove to be a controversial one. Across two public hearings only five members of the public spoke, and none were opposed to the application. At the hearing on July 15, only Joseph Kulowiec weighed in. Kulowiec said he wasn’t opposed to the application but wanted details about what steps would be taken to mitigate air quality concerns and water usage by the business.

The application approval was made possible by a February 2023 approval of a zoning regulation change application that allowed for cannabis micro-cultivation in the B-4 district by special exception. That application was filed by 5 Custom LLC. 5 Custom LLC is registered to Jacqueline Appleby, according to the state’s business website.