WOODSTOCK – Town and village officials are considering whether Woodstock should allow marijuana dispensaries when recreational cannabis sales in Vermont become legal next year.
The Woodstock Cannabis Review Committee is conducting an online survey of local residents and business owners this week on the potential retail sales of cannabis.
The survey asked respondents whether the city or village should allow such business, how important revenue would be to Woodstock in the equation, and whether they would like more information on topics such as public safety, tourism, and “cannabis use and youth”.
The committee was formed on the recommendation of the Trustees of Woodstock Selectboard and Village.
“It’s a group that is not trying to make decisions, just gathering information and being as impartial as possible,” said Seton McIlroy, vice chairman of the Village Trustees and a member of the Cannabis Review Committee.
The Woodstock poll follows the passage of Law 164 last fall that legalizes retail cannabis sales in Vermont from October 2022. Cities and villages have to decide, however, so that individual municipalities can generally determine their position themselves.
“The final doesn’t decide yes or no. The final only decides whether we will actually vote on it, ”McIlroy said of the poll.
Residents of more than two dozen Vermont towns and cities voted on the issue at the March Town Meeting, with most, including Burlington, Randolph, Strafford and Windsor, voting to approve retail marijuana sales.
A handful voted no, including Lyndon; Newport, Vt .; and Richmond.
The Hartford Selectboard decided not to bring the matter to voters earlier this year as more information was needed.
Earlier this week, Sam DiNatale, owner of Mon Vert Cafe in Woodstock, said she was relatively unconcerned about the possibility of cannabis sales in Woodstock. The survey asks about the importance of collecting tax revenue from the retail sale of cannabis.
“Sure why not? It’s already pretty government regulated and is currently under tough scrutiny,” DiNatale said. “We sell CBD here if that gives you an idea how I think about it.”
CBD is a cannabis-derived compound that has little or no psychoactive effects.
Under the new law, a 14% excise tax would be levied on the sale of cannabis products, along with the state’s 6% sales tax. The new state Cannabis Control Board could also collect local license fees from pharmacies and distribute some of that money to the host communities.
Carolyn Benvenuti, executive coach and Woodstock resident, was more skeptical about the benefits of a cannabis tax.
“I think Woodstock could benefit from tax revenue from a lot of things,” she said. “Jumping to cannabis is not the way to go.”
Benvenuti, a recent transplant from Cambridge, Massachusetts, shares her experience in a town of 116,000 that has multiple colleges that legalized the sale of cannabis by licensed dealers in 2018.
She said she had experienced congestion from people coming to Cambridge from another state to buy marijuana.
“I think this problem is very real,” said Benvenuti.
Others feel different.
“We already have liquor stores everywhere,” said Kristian Preylowski, owner of the Yankee Bookshop. “I don’t see how much different it is.”
Still, Preylowski believes that Woodstock residents and business owners need to know more.
“Everyone has mixed feelings, but additional information would help reduce uncertainty and prejudice,” he said.
The state Cannabis Control Board should make several recommendations to lawmakers on April 1, including the size of the proposed cannabis fees. However, after the nomination process has been delayed by three months, this remains in the air.
McIlroy pointed out that at this point, with the details of Law 164 still fluid, the Woodstock Committee is only concerned with taking the temperature of the city.
“We are far from getting a definitive response from the state, even what (Law 164) means,” McIlroy said. “After we learned a little more, we found that we had a lot more questions than answers.”
The Selectboard and Village trustees have the option to bring the matter to a vote in the city assembly, or residents could request it as well.
Frances Mize can be reached at fmize@vnews.com.