Charlotte reworks cannabis land use regulations

Charlotte’s just-approved cannabis land use regulations are back to the drafting table after the Legislature updated the state’s cannabis rules to exempt all outdoor grow operations from municipal permitting in the same way as agriculture.

“It seems likely to earn the governor’s signature, so we’re acting accordingly,” town planner Larry Lewack said.

He explained that although Charlotte can still regulate other types of cannabis businesses, “We just have to basically cross out everything that pertains to outdoor cannabis cultivation because we don’t have authority.”

Under current law, exemption from municipal permitting is restricted only to small outdoor cultivation projects up to 1,000 square feet of plant canopy or 125 plants, which Lewack described as a “problematic rule from the get-go.”

“Everything that we were trying to address through our regulations had an asterisk next to it that basically said, ‘Except for (Tier 1 outdoor) grows, here are the rules.’ It made for some awkward language but more importantly, it created a truck-sized hole big enough for certain operations to drive through untouched by any local regulations.”

Not only does one aspect of the miscellaneous cannabis bill, H.270, exempt outdoor cultivation from local zoning, but it would also force the elimination of things like the proposed 200-foot setback from an outdoor cultivator’s property line that was suggested in Charlotte’s original draft regulations.

Most residents showed overwhelming support for the Charlotte Planning Commission’s efforts to strictly regulate cannabis in town, with some residents going so far as encouraging the commission to increase the proposed buffer to 500 feet.

“I believe in the adage, ‘Good fences make good neighbors,’ and, with cannabis, a fence means distance,” said resident Jen Banbury at the public hearing on March 23. “That’s the main way to protect neighbors from odors and other negative fallout. The state, itself, requires a 500-foot buffer for schools. What about homes with school-aged children? What about residents that act as home schools? I believe that a 500-foot buffer should apply to residences.”

Another resident, Andrew Hale echoed that sentiment: “I think the 200-foot (buffer) is a good start … I’d prefer to see 500 feet there.”

Other residents, like Peter Johnson, urged the commission to take a firm stance against the agricultural aspects of the budding market.

“I think what’s critical to remember and understand is that cannabis cultivation is not (agriculture), it’s a business and should be treated as such ... and should follow all of the performance standards that any commercial business in town is required to do.”

In one sense, Lewack explained that the new rules do create a more streamlined process for regulating cannabis.

“It’s simplified the process because if issues come up or if there’s a new licensee, we don’t have to sweat the details if it’s an outdoor cultivation because they’re exempt.”

On the other hand, he said, the change brings about an even more limited municipal control, and “that part’s a little frustrating.”

Because the town’s selectboard also acts as the local cannabis control commission, outdoor cultivators will still have to receive local licensing, but Lewack said, “It is more pro forma with that.”

John Stern, who operates a Tier 1 outdoor grow in Charlotte, has run into a slew of resident-led backlash during his time growing in Charlotte — a chaotic situation he likened to a new wave of “reefer madness.” For him, this bill would create a much smoother relicensing process — which must be done annually — while also shielding him from overreaching municipal authority.

“I think this is a very positive development supporting the continued use of agricultural land in Vermont for agricultural purposes, which is to say it is completely and beneficially aligned with Vermont tradition,” he wrote in an email.

A public hearing for the revised land use regulations has been warned for June 15 with the hope of sending the new rules to the selectboard for adoption soon after that. But some members of Charlotte’s local cannabis control commission have made their disapproval of the state-guided process on municipal control clear from the start.

“This is Kafkaesque and represents everything that’s wrong, in my opinion, with some of the things coming out of Montpelier,” member Lewis Mudge said when a past cannabis application came before the commission for approval.

Due to these recent changes, selectboard members nixed an agenda item dedicated to discussing the previously proposed regulations at last week’s meeting.

“Once you get (agriculture),” Mudge said, shaking his head. “Smoke it if you got it.”