WEST SPRINGFIELD — The Zoning Board of Appeals denied a variance to WS Coliseum Inc. for a proposed Riverdale Street cannabis dispensary, refusing to waive a requirement that marijuana retail stores be at least 1,300 feet apart from each other.
“Based on what we’re getting today, I find it very difficult to see it meet the requirements of the variance,” said board member Joe Kelley at the Oct. 28 hearing.
WS Coliseum proposed a dispensary at 1115 Riverdale St., in the Table & Vine shopping center.
According to a business plan summary submitted with the application, the company is based in Massachusetts and is owned by Thomas Rooke, Joginder Singh and Kamaljit Kaur, who have had prior success with ZaZa Green in Springfield.
The store aimed to provide a “first-class experience and a wide inventory of marijuana and marijuana products,” according to the application.
It would have created 15 to 23 full- and part-time jobs, with hiring priority for locals. The applicants also planned a neighborhood advisory committee, which would have overseen a neighborhood improvement fund. WS Coliseum had pledged to donate 1% of net revenues to the fund.
Attorney Michael Fenton of Shatz, Schwartz and Fentin, representing the applicant, told the board that the proposed location is in a commercial area, at a distance from houses. It also meets the requirements of being 500 feet away from a school and from children’s recreational areas.
The site was selected through a search by the company and town during the request for proposals process, he said.
“The applicant has a successful lease with Big Y Foods Inc., who’s very excited about activating this portion of the plaza and thinks that they would be a wonderful fit for this location,” he said.
But it’s only approximately 625 feet away from Cannabis Connection at 1102 Riverdale St., less than the 1,300-foot setback required by the town, according to the application.
Fenton argued that, by vehicle, the distance would be over 4,500 feet. A median and guardrail separate the two sides of Riverdale Street, preventing drivers from turning left except at designated intersections, and forcing a lengthy detour and U-turn to get from Cannabis Connection to the proposed WS Coliseum site, or vice versa.
“These existing conditions, specifically Riverdale Street itself, make it so that this is a unique situation affecting this property and the cannabis retail location across the street,” he said.
Board member Bo Sjoberg said he believed distance was measured as a straight line from one store’s entrance to another, unless there is an impassable barrier. Then, it’s measured by the shortest pedestrian path. Town Planner Allyson Manuel confirmed that was correct.
Board member Randy Guyette said there were crosswalks across Riverdale Street that would connect the two sites. According to Google Maps, the closest is directly south of the Table & Vine building.
Board Chair Reid McManis also said that the RFP the business responded to listed another location.
“They had another address on Riverdale that did comply, which I’m sure helped with the selection process,” he said.
Fenton said two locations were submitted during the RFP process, including the one being discussed by the board. Fenton also argued that enforcement of the bylaw would provide a hardship to the developers.
“Significant time and money has been invested into this site and location through due diligence and leasing, as well as through the competitive RFP process,” he said.
Kelly said it was difficult to prove there was any hardship. McManis agreed. The only member of the public to speak at the hearing, former zoning board member Gerard Matthews, also agreed.
“There’s really no hardship here except one that may be personal to the applicants, himself, or his corporation,” he said.
Fenton also argued that the proposal doesn’t substantially deviate from the intent of the bylaw. He also said that the ordinance wouldn’t apply to applicants who qualify for social equity programs under the Cannabis Control Commission, arguing that that meant that the Town Council considered the requirement laborious and waivable if the right applicants applied.
Though WS Coliseum Inc. is minority-owned, it did not qualify for the social equity programs. McManis disagreed, saying that, “in my opinion, it does derogate from the intent of the ordinance.”
The board ultimately voted to deny the variance.
Had it been granted, the developers would have begun negotiating a host community agreement, which would have needed to be approved by the Town Council. They would have also needed a special permit and site plan approval from the town, and licensing from the state Cannabis Control Commission.
