In a four-to-one vote, the Township Committee banned the sale and growth of marijuana in the community during their latest meeting.
The issue has been discussed and debated for months during prior committee meetings with the majority of the committee saying they needed more time to deliberate on the matter. The state gave municipalities in New Jersey 180 days to decide whether to allow sales, distribution, and other uses of the drug made legal recently.
Many Ocean County communities including Seaside Heights, Seaside Park, Lakewood and Brick have passed ordinances to ban the sale and growth of marijuana in their communities. Toms River is still considering such a move while Manchester recently voted to develop an ordinance modeled off a recommendation by the League of Municipalities to do the same.