Groups, citizens weigh in with their opposition
SOMERS POINT — Local residents and organizations have come out against the plan to allow cannabis businesses to operate in the city, saying “pot stores have no place here.”
City Council voted 5-2 on July 27 to introduce ordinance 19-2023, which would allow for a cannabis retailer and distributor to open in the city and designates where they could operate and other details.
That was followed by a Planning Board review Aug. 16 that found the plan is not consistent with the master plan. It’s unclear what, if any, steps City Council will take to try to move forward.
During that meeting, David McKeon, who identified himself as a professional planner and former city resident, said there are too many uncertainties for the board to find the ordinance consistent.
He said the anticipated traffic volume associated with a cannabis business is of “serious concern,” recommending a traffic study be conducted.
McKeon said a dispensary opened near where he lives that generated a lot of traffic and had too little parking. He said Route 9 is even more congested.
“There is a problem with the traffic that is going to be generated there,” he said. “You have to have adequate parking, as well as ingress and egress.”
McKeon also said there is a “high potential for spillover onto residential streets.”
In addition, he contends, such a business would draw a lot of pedestrian traffic, noting the master plan cites the lack of safe pedestrian circulation in the area as an issue that needs to be addressed.
“There are missing sidewalks, limited crosswalks and few traffic-control devices at intersections,” McKeon said, speculating that many customers would have to cross Route 9, while others would be walking along the shoulder of a state highway, to get to the shop.
“It’s imperative to this board and council that they receive formal input from the police and traffic engineer on traffic and pedestrian safety,” he said.
David Hughes, who identified himself as a long-term resident of Somers Point whose wife’s family goes back several generations, told the board that marijuana is illegal nationally and that they would be breaking the law to deem the ordinance consistent.
“I would argue that if you did so, you are also violating your duty of office and committing an illegal act because you are approving something that is illegal at the federal level,” Hughes said.
He further argued that the master plan addressed safe access to schools, noting the recommended sites for a shop are all near education facilities.
“Therefore you would violate your master plan if you voted for this ordinance,” Hughes said.
He suggested taking a step back.
“You’re moving too fast. Slow it down, look at your master plan and you will find that it is in there,” he said.
His wife, Patricia Hughes, added that the board has a responsibility to keep such businesses away from residential areas and schools.
Last week, the Somers Point Business Association provided a letter stating its opposition.
“Without clear guidelines/laws/regulations from the state of New Jersey and the city of Somers Point to determine the level of use, our businesses, particularly our restaurants, remain vulnerable from a liability standpoint as there will need to be insurance/safety requirements and additional costs that our local business owners could incur to account for risk levels of their patrons and/or employees,” it said. “There is also limited guidance for employers that may have employees that partake in the use of cannabis, potentially creating human resources issues to navigate the usage policies within their companies.”
The statement noted buying and selling marijuana is illegal on a federal level.
“The financial institutions within our community would not be able to accept funds or establish account relationships from any cannabis business that is opened within the city of Somers Point,” it said. “While we understand there is a strong personal opinion on this topic from many members of the Somers Point community, the goal of the Somers Point Business Association is to support our local businesses to adjust to regulations that could impact their operations. There are, simply, too many unknowns to effectively move forward at this time.”
Somers Point-Community First, an organization founded by David Hughes, also provided a statement.
“Somers Point is a family community, and pot stores have no place here,” it said, noting Police Chief Robert Somers’ opposition. “Our police chief has already laid out the many negative outcomes that these stores will bring, and we should heed his concerns.”
The statement questions the social cost of allowing marijuana shops.
“Opening a pot store is a terrible idea for Somers Point now, and it will have disastrous impact in the future,” it said.
Walt Gregory, co-owner of Gregory’s Restaurant & Bar, serves as president of the Somers Point Licensed Beverage Association, an organization consisting of every establishment in the city that has a consumption or packaged goods license.
He said the organization opposes the licensing of cannabis sales in the city because of liability issues, arguing a liquor license holder is an easy target of a lawsuit in the case of an accident involving intoxication but the potential role of marijuana use cannot be measured.
“The easy access to cannabis leads to increased probability of mixing alcohol and cannabis, which increases liability exposure for licensed businesses,” Gregory said. “If a customer consumes a moderate amount of alcohol and then further impairs their driving abilities by taking cannabis, the alcohol is the only easily detectable product. Insurance costs will rise for licensed businesses but not for cannabis dealers.”
He also said there is no way to tell where an impaired driver got the marijuana nor how much they had.
By CRAIG D. SCHENCK/Sentinel staff