WESTWOOD — Officials have banned sales of marijuana, both medicinal and recreational, in the borough, despite some members of the public arguing that medical marijuana dispensaries should be permitted near Hackensack Meridian Health Pascack Valley Medical Center.
As the state Legislature moves toward a legal marijuana bill, which one marijuana advocate has said is “98 percent done,” Westwood joined a growing number of towns across North Jersey that have said no to legal weed.
The ordinance was approved 4-1 on Tuesday, with Councilwoman Erin Collins, who wished for medical marijuana sales to be exempt, as the sole dissenting vote.
A number of residents have urged the borough to reconsider the ban of medicinal marijuana, saying access to medicinal marijuana dispensaries are limited throughout the state.
“I am a father, and I welcome a dispensary into my neighborhood with open arms if it meant my neighbor would have easier access during a very difficult time in their life,” resident Eric Dougherty said at a meeting this month.
Six towns in New Jersey, but none in Bergen or Passaic County, have dispensaries: Bellmawr, Cranbury, Egg Harbor Township, Montclair, Secaucus, and Woodbridge.
Dougherty said the ordinance “attacked” disabled residents, and detailed how medicinal marijuana helped improved his mother’s condition while she was struggling with cancer at the end of her life.
“My mom went from not being able to be in the same room as food and rarely getting out of bed to being able to enjoy her favorite foods again and spend quality time with her family,” Dougherty said.
Mayor John Birkner, who called the measure a “bad ordinance” that was “sensationalized,” said he didn’t support the legalization of recreational marijuana, but supported medical marijuana near the town’s hospital zone.
“We are a medical-providing community,” Birkner said during Tuesday’s meeting.
Such a vision is hypothetical at this point; there have been no proposals to open a dispensary near the hospital.
The Planning Board had been discussing the land use potential for medical marijuana, but talks were cut short when the ordinance banning marijuana was put before the council, said Birkner.
“I think if an ordinance is to be written, it should have a detailed discussion and detailed review through our land use experts,” said Birkner.
Council President Chris Montana said, “any ordinance can be amended or revised” and that he would like to see what the state law looks like before inviting the governing body and Planning Board to revisit the ban. Similarly, Councilman Robert Bicocchi approved the ban, since he wanted to see what the state had in store.
“I want to be precautionary to ensure we’re not the first one to make the first mistake,” said Bicocchi.
Councilwoman Alyssa Dawson, who supports a delivery system for medicinal marijuana, voted yes on the borough’s ban after having concerns about the most recent draft of the state’s marijuana legalization bill.
Dawson was concerned about a section that would “authorize an alternative treatment center to dispense marijuana to or on behalf of a person who is not a registered qualifying patient” and the ability for these facilities to “apply for a retail license immediately.”
Credit: www.northjersey.com/
