This is a printer-friendly version of an article from Zip06.com.
08/04/2023 04:30 PMAn application to build a second retail marijuana store in Westbrook has been withdrawn by the applicant ahead of a public hearing that was set to open in August.
At the start of a Zoning Commission hearing on July 4, it was revealed that an application for a second retail marijuana store in Westbrook had been withdrawn by the applicant.
In June, the commission accepted an application to build a retail cannabis store at 144 Boston Post Road. The application was submitted by 144 BPR LLC. The state’s business registry lists Samuel Lyman as the principal of the LLC.
According to the application, the site is currently used as an RV and camping supply store. Under the proposed plan, the retail area would have occupied 1,920 square feet.
Westbrook Zoning Enforcement Officer Michael D’Amato said that the applicant was sent a letter that stated, “After discussing with my engineer Joe Wren, local residents such as Tony Cozza, and factoring time and economics, I have decided to withdraw my application.”
Attempts to contact Lyman for further comment were not successful.
The proposed site for the application was not far from another already-approved retail marijuana store in Westbrook. In January 2023, the commission approved an application from BUDR Holding 3 LLC to open a retail cannabis store at 755 Boston Post Road. According to town zoning regulations, any retail cannabis store must be located more than 5,000 feet from another cannabis retailer in town. The BPR application would have exceeded the requirement by 755 feet.
When the state legislature first legalized marijuana retail in 2021, there was a population cap that would have limited Westbrook to only one store for the whole town. However, former Westbrook Zoning Enforcement Officer Steve Hnatuk explained that rule was no longer in effect.
“There is no population-based cap for the number of retailers or micro-cultivators a town may have. Section 9 of Public Act 22-103 removed the population cap for the number of retailers and micro-cultivators in a municipality initially included in Section 148 of Public Act 21-1,” Hnatuk said last month, adding the new application would not affect the previous BUDR approval.
At the July meeting, the commission voted to enact a moratorium on retail marijuana applications for six months.
“The moratorium that was passed prohibits any cannabis retail application from being submitted to the Zoning Commission for the duration of the moratorium. As the 144 BPR application was withdrawn, they would then be subject to the moratorium if they were to seek approval a second time,” D’Amato said.