Four of seven council members skip special meeting Friday
SOMERS POINT — Approval of cannabis businesses in Somers Point is going to have to wait at least another six weeks.
City Council held a special meeting July 7 to introduce an ordinance that would allow for a cannabis retailer and distributor to open in the city, but only three of the seven members attended. Without a quorum, no action could be taken.
City Council President Janice Johnston said she was unhappy that four members did not show up to the meeting.
“They could have communicated if they didn’t agree that we should have it and I could have canceled it,” she said. “I was just trying to move things forward. We wasted taxpayers’ dollars planning a meeting that we couldn’t get anything accomplished at.”
Councilman Rick DePamhillis and Councilwoman Karen Bruno, members of the Cannabis Committee, were also present.
Councilman Mike Owen said he was otherwise engaged and could not attend the meeting.
“I just wasn’t able to make it,” Owen said July 9.
He noted, however, that the 23-page document is quite lengthy.
“I still want time to put it under the microscope,” he said.
Likewise, Councilman Joe McCarrie said he was unable to attend. He said he is still in favor of the ordinance.
Councilman Howard Dill said personal business came up unexpectedly, preventing him from attending.
Councilman Sean McGuigan, who has steadfastly voted against allowing cannabis businesses in Somers Point, said his absence had nothing to do with the ordinance and that he is continuing to contemplate the topic.
“I’m leaning against it at this point but still doing research and moving with an open mind,” he said. “I will exercise my vote when cannabis comes up.”
He questioned the need for a special meeting, which requires the cost of advertising and paying professionals such as City Clerk Lucy Samuelsen, solicitor Tom Smith and City Administrator Jason Frost, all of whom were present.
“What is the rush? Has everyone, particular the members of the cannabis committee, done their research?” McGuigan said. “When something like that happens, it is not invoking confidence in city government.”
On June 22, the governing body authorized Smith to send a formal request for recommendations from the Planning Board regarding licensing of cannabis retail and distribution operations.
Smith said City Council would need to introduce an ordinance and send it to the Planning Board for review. However, City Council was not scheduled to meet again until after the Planning Board’s July 19 meeting. Therefore, if the governing body wanted to hold the final reading and public hearing during its regularly scheduled meeting July 27, it would have to hold a special meeting.
Now City Council still has to introduce the ordinance and send it to the Planning Board if approved before holding a final vote. The board is set to meet again Aug. 16 and City Council on Aug. 24.
Johnston said the ordinance would be on the agenda for the next meeting.
The ordinance amends the city’s development regulations to allow the operation of two classes of cannabis businesses — retail and distribution.
On Feb. 22, 2021, Gov. Phil Murphy signed into law the New Jersey Cannabis Regulatory, Enforcement Assistance and Marketplace Modernization Act (CREAMMA), which legalized the recreational use of cannabis by adults and established a comprehensive regulatory and licensing program for commercial recreational cannabis operations, use and possession.
CREAMMA established six classes of licensed businesses — cultivator, manufacturer, wholesaler, distributer, retailer and delivery — and allowed municipalities to decide whether to permit or prohibit the facilities.
It also provided for a tax incentive, allowing municipalities to impose a 2 percent tax on retail sales and 1 percent tax on other classes.
Somers Point initially prohibited all sales but did so under a tight deadline that would have forced the city to abide by the state guidelines for five years, which had not been established at the time.
City Council spent many meetings discussing the issue and formed a committee to research the issue.
The Economic Development Advisory Commission also researched the topic, sharing some revenue projects with council and creating a questionnaire to gauge interest that was featured on the city web site. It failed, however, to garner enough vote to make it a worthwhile comment on public opinion.
Its results matched that of the state referendum on decriminalizing recreational use, about two-thirds in favor, as well as Somers Point’s results from that referendum.
By CRAIG D. SCHENCK/Sentinel staff