ROWLEY – Nature’s Remedy, a nonprofit medical marijuana company, has received approval to open a dispensary at 300 Newburyport Turnpike. The owners anticipate opening in September 2018.
This summer, the principals of Nature’s Remedy laid out plans to the Board of Selectmen for a retail facility that would sell marijuana for medicinal purposes to registered patients and caregivers. The company has secured a five-year optional lease on a 2,500-square-foot storefront in the El Tapatio plaza.
The board verified with other local officials that the proposed medical marijuana dispensary would be located in a zoning district that allows such use through local permitting. On Aug. 31, the board provided a letter of support to Nature’s Remedy.
Massachusetts law allows for three registered marijuana dispensaries in the state through the Department of Health.
Nature’s Remedy has already had two facilities approved – both cultivation locations – in Grafton and Millbury, and is in the building and site design stage for those locations. The Rowley application is the company’s third and final application.
David Miller, a director for Nature’s Remedy, said the company expects to break ground this month at the Grafton facility, a 30,000-square-foot greenhouse and processing center.
“Depending on how the growth and cultivation goes at this location, we are hoping to open the retail facility in Rowley in September 2018,” he said.
Nature’s Remedy has expressed its intent to work closely with the town to ensure the proposed dispensary complies with zoning bylaws. The company said it expects to provide five to 15 full-time jobs in the area.
The company still has to move through the site plan approval and special permitting process with the Rowley Planning Board, and coordinate oversight and security with the town departments and local police.
“We are excited about moving into Rowley and are happy to get a letter of support,” Miller said. “We look forward to being a partner with the town in this endeavor.”
credit:newburyportnews.com
