Dennis Township

Now that New Jersey has legalized marijuana use and possession for adults 21 years and older, South Jersey municipalities have begun adopting their own rules to address use and sale.

And while, many towns are opting to ban it, some are now opening the door to the industry based on the promise of job creation and tax benefits.

Now that New Jersey has legalized marijuana use and possession for adults 21 years and older, South Jersey municipalities have begun adopting their own rules to address use and sale. Under the N.J. Cannabis Regulatory, Enforcement Assistance, and Marketplace Modernization Act towns have until Aug. 21 - 180 days from the adoption of the state law - to create any local enforcement structure. Towns that do not act by then will be governed by the state's law.

Here's how communities are responding in South Jersey:

The Township Committee is considering two ordinances to restrict marijuana use.

The ordinances, introduced April 27 by the committee, would prohibit all cannabis establishments, distributors or delivery services from opening within township boundaries, and also prohibit marijuana use in public spaces.

The delivery of cannabis items and related supplies by a delivery service would still be permitted under the ordinance.

Time may be running out for a resident’s attempt to get township support for a medical marijuana facility in the rural Eldora section of the township.

Emmett Vandegrift, one of the founders of Evergreen Curative LLC, is seeking a state license to grow marijuana for the medicinal market. His company has an agreement to lease a section of a shrubbery farm and an application for one of six new licenses made available under Gov. Phil Murphy’s expansion of New Jersey’s medical marijuana program.

At the Aug. 28 Dennis Township Committee meeting a presentation was made by Evergreen Curative LLC regarding its interest in applying for a state medical marijuana license and potentially locating a facility in Dennis Township.

Emmett Vandergrift, co-owner of Evergreen Curative LLC, a New Jersey-based medical marijuana organization, asked the committee if the township would support or oppose such a facility.

...

Emmett Vandergrift, a representative of Evergreen Curative Care LLC, a New Jersey-based medical marijuana organization, recently presented Lower Township Council with a request to consider supporting a medical marijuana dispensary in Lower Township. He said that his company would manage such a facility in partnership with Sea Hunter Capital Management.