Some New Jersey voters will get to
choose, again, if they want legal marijuana sold in their
town on the upcoming ballot in Lacey Township.
The township wants the people to
decide whether to allow marijuana to be grown, manufactured and
sold.
Last election, New Jersey voters
chose to legalize marijuana on the ballot question overwhelmingly – 2-1 once
the votes were tallied.
But Mayor Peter Curatolo says not
so fast. Legalizing pot is one thing, growing and selling in the town is a
whole other issue.
“They voted yes to recreational
marijuana, but they did not vote yes in our town to have it sold in our town or
grown in our town and that's a very important distinction,” says Mayor Peter
Curatolo.
An ordinance on the books already
bans the sale and cultivation of marijuana in Lacey Township, but the mayor
says committee members told him let the voters decide.
“I
want people to know it's very different to have it at the state level, but to
have it focused where the microfocus in our town, within our town, with our
parkway access,” says Mayor Peter Curatolo. “My concern is I don't want us to become a hub for pot tourism.”
Mayor Peter Curatolo says at the urging of fellow
committee members, the question was added to the ballot. If a majority vote
yes, it will override a current ordinance banning sales and growing facilities
of recreational use.
The New Jersey CannaBusiness Association
says it’s the only town it knows of leaving it to the voters to decide, and while they
disagree on the mayor's standpoint, they recognize the efforts by council for a
fair vote.
The CannaBusiness
Association says a yes vote will bring safer access to cannabis, jobs,
community investment, a broader tax base, and redevelopment.