Cannabis Businesses No Longer Barred In Englishtown

ENGLISHTOWN, NJ — The Borough Council has repealed its prohibition of cannabis businesses in town by a vote of 4-2.

Now, licensed cannabis businesses can apply to operate in the borough.

Councilman Daniel Francisco made the motion to repeal the prohibition at the Oct. 26 meeting. His motion was seconded by Councilman Bill Lewis. They voted for the repeal as did Councilmen William Sabin and Bill Marter. Councilmembers Cindy Robilotti and Eric Mann voted against the repeal. Mayor Thomas Reynolds votes only in a tie.

Any class of cannabis business could now apply for approval to operate in the borough, Francisco said, adding that the town still would have to approve the business.

Cannabis operations "are a legal business and should be viewed as anything else," Francisco said, when asked about the repeal of the prohibition.

According to New Jersey's Cannabis Regulatory Commission, it issues licenses for medicinal and recreational cannabis business operations.

Each business requires a license, which must be active and in good standing, to perform any commercial cannabis activity, including:

• Growing cannabis plants
• Storing cannabis and cannabis products
• Making cannabis products
• Transporting or delivering cannabis and cannabis products
• Selling cannabis and cannabis products
• Testing cannabis and cannabis products

The commission is currently accepting applications for personal use (recreational) cannabis businesses in the following categories:

• Class 1 Cultivator Licenses
• Class 2 Manufacturer Licenses
• Class 5 Retailers
• Testing Laboratories

License applications will be accepted and reviewed on a rolling basis until indicated otherwise. Social Equity Businesses, Diversely-Owned Businesses, Impact Zone Businesses, and applications that receive bonus points will be afforded priority review, scoring, and approval, the commission says.

There is no established limit on the number of cannabis business licenses available statewide. By statute, however, the number of Class 1 Cultivators is to be held to 37 licenses until February 22, 2023.

Municipalities are then responsible for establishing their own rules for getting local approval to operate a cannabis business, the state noted.

Francisco said the Englishtown location would be attractive to potential marijuana businesses because it is central in the area, and there are no nearby cannabis retail outlets or storage facilities.

"We're in a prime location. We want prospective businesses to know," Francisco said.

Francisco said the borough needs to develop its downtown business district with a variety of new businesses - not just a cannabis operation.

He said he envisions Englishtown's developing its downtown to become a destination such as Freehold.