Whitman Amends Cannabis Agreement, Sets Special Town Meeting

Town officials revise Host Community Agreement, schedule December 2 Special Town Meeting

WHITMAN, MA - October 8 - Whitman officials are working to revise the Host Community Agreement (HCA) with Berkeley Botanicals to comply with Cannabis Control Commission (CCC) guidelines. The Select Board voted to approve two agreements related to the cannabis retailer during their October 8 meeting.

Town Counsel Peter Sumners explained that Berkeley Botanicals had presented the previously agreed-upon HCA to the CCC, but it was rejected along with many other custom agreements. The CCC is now typically only approving a model HCA they have proposed.

"CCC is essentially not approving custom-tailored agreements, but they will approve a model HCA which is their model that they've proposed for folks to enter into," Sumners stated.

To address this, Whitman officials have proposed that Berkeley Botanicals seek additional relief from the Zoning Board of Appeals (ZBA) through an amendment to their special permit. The ZBA chair has developed potential conditions for the board to consider.

The Select Board approved two agreements: the model HCA between Whitman and Berkeley Botanicals, and a separate agreement requiring the company to seek relief from the ZBA. If Berkeley fails to obtain relief from the ZBA, the model HCA will be void.

"That's intended to make sure that some of those conditions that we're moving from the HCA into special permit conditions are in fact adopted by the ZBA and there's no funny business in terms of you know adopting one and not the other," Attorney Sumners explained.

The board voted unanimously to approve both agreements and authorize the chair to sign them.

In other business, the Select Board approved the warrant for a Special Town Meeting scheduled for Dec. 2 at 7 p.m. The primary purpose of the meeting is to vote on amending the regional agreement for South Shore Regional Vocational School.

Town Administrator Mary Beth Carter explained that the amendment would change how debt is calculated for the vocational school. "It is basically an amendment to the agreement that will allow the calculation to be done for debt based on a four-year rolling average as opposed to taking just the prior three years estimate and locking that in as the percent that each town would pay for the debt," she said.

The Special Town Meeting warrant also includes articles for prior fiscal year bills, the cable access account, and articles from the school district that were previously passed over in May.

The board voted to accept the new Deputy Fire Chief's contract with a 3-1 vote during an executive session. No further details about the contract were provided in open session.

In other matters, the board:

- Recognized the retirement of Deputy Fire Chief Thomas G. Ford, presenting him with a proclamation for his 25 years of service to the town.

- Accepted a $7,500 donation from the Copeland Family Foundation to the Animal Shelter.

- Approved the warrant for the Nov. 5 presidential state election.

- Appointed Thomas Pistorino to the Whitman Cultural Council for a three-year term.

- Authorized Police Chief Hanlon to hire two new officers due to upcoming retirements.

- Announced a sharps, needles, and drug turn-in day for Oct. 26 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Whitman Police Department parking lot.