Medford Signs Host Community Agreement With 2nd Marijuana Dispensary

MEDFORD, MA — Medford Mayor Breanna Lungo-Koehn signed a Host Community Agreement with its second recreational marijuana dispensary on Monday.

The city signed the five-year agreement with Sanctuary Medicinals, which plans to open a retail marijuana dispensary on Riverside Avenue.

Sanctuary was the fourth ranked applicant based on scoring criteria put in place by the City’s Cannabis Advisory Committee (CAC). Nine applicants were considered, interviewed by the CAC, and ranked, with final rankings submitted to the Mayor in Fall 2021.

Sanctuary Medicinals now follows Theory Wellness as the second dispensary to enter into a Host Community Agreement with Medford. They will need to obtain Special Permit approval from the Zoning Board of Appeals before they can begin operation. They are also subject to approval from the state’s Cannabis Control Commission.

As with the agreement with Theory Wellness, the leadership at Sanctuary Medicinals made it a priority to hire Medford residents whenever possible and has agreed to Mayor Lungo-Koehn’s requirement that at least 50 percent of its employees will be women, at least 35 percent of employees will be of diverse backgrounds, and at least 5 percent of employees will be military veterans. Priority will also be given to local vendors whenever possible for resources and materials.

As part of the Host Community Agreement Sanctuary Medicinals will also make annual contributions to the Medford Fire Department for upkeep and maintenance purposes, as well as develop a community space to allow for storage capacity for local non-profits.

Other community benefits agreed to by Sanctuary Medicinals as part of the Host Community Agreement include:

• Providing $100,000 of interest-free financing and technical guidance to a Medford resident of color to open a business in Medford
• Providing at least $100,000 of financial support and technical guidance to sponsor environmentally sustainable businesses and business practices in Medford
• Making annual contributions of $50,000 to Medford-based non-profits or city-run organizations
• Providing $50,000 to the City of Medford to support funding of a Health Impacts Assessment within the first year
• Purchasing and donating one DPW vehicle annually
• Adding an EV charging station and a Blue Bike station on site
• Paying for one Bluebike station and the annual maintenance fees

“This agreement with Sanctuary Medicinals offers our community clear benefits that will go directly to helping our Fire Department, DPW, public spaces and infrastructure,” Mayor Breanna Lungo-Koehn said in a statement. “Much thought and consideration goes into the entire process, including each clause of this Host Community Agreement. I know Sanctuary will be a valuable and upstanding partner to Medford and I’m glad to see them invest in our community.

"As we have unfortunately recently seen, this process can be met by unsavory and ill-intentioned opportunists, which is why our vetting and interview process is carefully constructed to identify problem areas, and come to a solution that puts the people of Medford first,” she continued.

“Thank you to Mayor Lungo-Koehn and the Cannabis Advisory Committee for their hard work in choosing the best cannabis companies for Host Community Agreements in the City of Medford,” Jason Sidman, CEO of Sanctuary Medicinals, said in a statement. "We are privileged to be among them.”

Medford voters approved regulated recreational marijuana dispensaries in a citywide election in November 2016. The Medford City Council began working on an ordinance in 2016 and approved zoning amendments to support the siting of these dispensaries in September 2020, with a vote to adopt a Cannabis Advisory Committee in November 2020. A Committee was convened and began its process in February 2021 with final recommendations submitted in Fall 2021. The mayor signed the first CHA in early March.

Under City Ordinance, the mayor may negotiate up to three Host Community Agreements for marijuana dispensaries.