Roughly half the cities and towns in New Jersey are likely to prohibit adult-use cannabis businesses for at least the foreseeable future, given their impending hard deadline of Aug. 21 to decide whether to opt in or opt out of the industry.
According to the Gothamist, localities that choose to ban the marijuana industry might “reverse course at any time” while those that choose to permit cannabis companies will be forced to accept their existence for at least five years before they’re allowed to change their minds.
One of the things we know for sure is that all towns are given the option to opt out of the sale of marijuana in their towns if they so choose. And many towns have already taken advantage of this.
One town that is jumping on the bandwagon in favor of marijuana sales is Eatontown. I’ve already seen a marijuana dispensary sitting along the highway in Eatontown, sparkling and beautiful, all ready to be opened as soon as the legislature could get its act together and the town could pass the relevant ordinances.
1. Cannabis promotes tourism
The Jersey Shore, Ellis Island, Manhattan, and the Catskill Mountains are only a few of the many tourist hotspots in New Jersey and New York. Legal cannabis has the chance to not only keep these resorts running but bring in significantly more profits and tourists overall. Since gaining momentum in the past decade, cannabis businesses have developed unique attractions for tourists, including but not limited to bus tours, cannabis-friendly hotel accommodations, paint nights, and more.
The days are dwindling for cities and towns in New Jersey to make up their minds about allowing marijuana businesses within their borders. If they do nothing, municipalities are barred from banning cannabusiness for five years.
The Borough Council has passed an ordinance allowing two marijuana shops to open here.
The stores will be allowed in the borough’s Business Zone, which extends from the intersection of Madison Street and Canal Road to the intersection of Main and Madison streets to the intersection of Main and Maple streets.
The stores allowed to be open from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m.
The ordinance also requires the stores to have 24-hour video surveillance equipment and trained security personnel during business hours.
The Borough Council last month unanimously adopted an ordinance establishing cannabis licensing and regulations. The ordinance becomes effective 20 days after the council's July 22 vote.
Under the ordinance, anyone looking to operate a cannabis business in the borough must obtain a license in accordance with the New Jersey Cannabis Regulatory, Enforcement Assistance and Marketplace Modernization Act.
The borough, which was first at the Shore to have a medical marijuana dispensary, will permit the businesses on its main commercial corridor along routes 35 and 36. While two new licenses will be made available for retail cannabis, a third license is expected to go to the Garden State Dispensary, the medical marijuana dispenser, to expand its operations to include recreational sales.
There will be a public hearing and final vote on a proposal to permit recreational marijuana businesses to operate in Gloucester Township when council meets Monday night.
Gloucester Township Council will meet at 7:30 p.m. Monday night at the municipal building, 1261 Chews Landing Road.
Council approved the proposal on introduction at its July 26 meeting.
In an effort to buy extra time, the City Council is moving to ban all recreational marijuana businesses from Paterson, despite Mayor Andre Sayegh’s support for an initiative he says could produce $1.5 million in annual fees.
In an 8-0 vote late Wednesday night, the council gave preliminary approval to opting out of the state’s recreational cannabis program. Sayegh’s plan would have allowed as many as 36 businesses to cultivate, manufacture, sell and deliver the marijuana.
Mayor Michael Wildes has opted to veto the council’s decision to ban marijuana business in the city, calling the move “ridiculous.”
The council approved a ban on July 29 that would prohibit the cultivation and sale of marijuana. Wildes had 10 days to sign the veto, and he did just that on Friday.