Ron Strider
Well-Known Member
A West Springfield resident spearheading an effort to ban the sale of recreational marijuana in town is accusing the mayor of favoritism toward the marijuana industry over the will of townspeople, as the mayor denies the claim.
In a statement emailed to several news outlets, Dean J. Martilli, an attorney and consultant, said that West Springfield Mayor William Reichelt's failure to lead an effort to allow the town to opt out of recreational marijuana sales and his approval of three medical marijuana facilities are proof of the mayor's affinity with prospective marijuana vendors.
"First term Mayor William Reichelt is in the pocket of marijuana groups that want to sell recreational marijuana in the Town of West Springfield," Martilli's statement reads. "Mayor Reichelt ... is turning his back on students, education, public safety and the voice of West Side residents and he is selling out to special interests."
Compared to the House bill passed Wednesday, the Senate bill sticks more closely to the original provisions voters supported last November.
Responding to a copy of the statement provided by a reporter from The Republican, Reichelt denied having any interest in Massachusetts' burgeoning marijuana industry, and said Martilli is out of line to make such a claim.
"It's disgusting; playing petty politics like on the national level, and bringing it here to West Springfield," Reichelt said in an interview Monday. "I'm disappointed."
On Nov. 8, Question 4, the measure that legalized possession, use, distribution, and cultivation of marijuana in the commonwealth, appeared on ballots statewide. Around 53 percent of voters approved the measure with a majority of municipalities opting for legalization, according to data from Secretary of State William Galvin's office.
But the statewide vote does not necessarily reflect the attitudes of West Springfield, a town Martilli describes as conservative-leaning, which rejected the measure by a 3.6 percent margin, according to a Boston Globe community-by-community map.
In West Springfield, there is a moratorium on recreational marijuana stores which lasts through Dec. 31, 2018, about six months longer than the state's moratorium, which was intended to allow legislators time to sort out the process.
The West Springfield Town Council voted Monday to amend the expiration date for the town's moratorium on recreational marijuana facilities to reflect changes in the state's timetable for allowing retail sales of the drug.
Last week the state House of Representatives introduced a version of marijuana legalization that would allow cities and towns to opt out, but authority to do so would be given to elected representatives.
As of now, the state Joint Committee on Marijuana Policy has not established a concrete method allowing cities and towns to opt out of allowing recreational marijuana businesses to open within their municipality. But Martilli fears that waiting too long could imperil local efforts to ban such sales.
In his statement, Martilli suggests that three letters of non-opposition Reichelt wrote to companies looking to open medical marijuana facilities in West Springfield would allow them to sell recreational marijuana.
Responding to the allegation, Reichelt said it is not clear whether medical marijuana facilities would be able to sell recreational marijuana, because no law has been passed, but that he would oppose such a measure.
"It wouldn't be fair to communities that voted for medical marijuana (and not recreational)," Reichelt said.
News Moderator: Ron Strider 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: West Springfield resident opposed to recreational marijuana criticizes Mayor Will Reichelt's handling of industry | masslive.com
Author: Sean Teehan
Contact: Contact Us - MassLive Media Solutions
Photo Credit: Getty
Website: Massachusetts Local News, Breaking News, Sports and Weather - MassLive.com
In a statement emailed to several news outlets, Dean J. Martilli, an attorney and consultant, said that West Springfield Mayor William Reichelt's failure to lead an effort to allow the town to opt out of recreational marijuana sales and his approval of three medical marijuana facilities are proof of the mayor's affinity with prospective marijuana vendors.
"First term Mayor William Reichelt is in the pocket of marijuana groups that want to sell recreational marijuana in the Town of West Springfield," Martilli's statement reads. "Mayor Reichelt ... is turning his back on students, education, public safety and the voice of West Side residents and he is selling out to special interests."
Compared to the House bill passed Wednesday, the Senate bill sticks more closely to the original provisions voters supported last November.
Responding to a copy of the statement provided by a reporter from The Republican, Reichelt denied having any interest in Massachusetts' burgeoning marijuana industry, and said Martilli is out of line to make such a claim.
"It's disgusting; playing petty politics like on the national level, and bringing it here to West Springfield," Reichelt said in an interview Monday. "I'm disappointed."
On Nov. 8, Question 4, the measure that legalized possession, use, distribution, and cultivation of marijuana in the commonwealth, appeared on ballots statewide. Around 53 percent of voters approved the measure with a majority of municipalities opting for legalization, according to data from Secretary of State William Galvin's office.
But the statewide vote does not necessarily reflect the attitudes of West Springfield, a town Martilli describes as conservative-leaning, which rejected the measure by a 3.6 percent margin, according to a Boston Globe community-by-community map.
In West Springfield, there is a moratorium on recreational marijuana stores which lasts through Dec. 31, 2018, about six months longer than the state's moratorium, which was intended to allow legislators time to sort out the process.
The West Springfield Town Council voted Monday to amend the expiration date for the town's moratorium on recreational marijuana facilities to reflect changes in the state's timetable for allowing retail sales of the drug.
Last week the state House of Representatives introduced a version of marijuana legalization that would allow cities and towns to opt out, but authority to do so would be given to elected representatives.
As of now, the state Joint Committee on Marijuana Policy has not established a concrete method allowing cities and towns to opt out of allowing recreational marijuana businesses to open within their municipality. But Martilli fears that waiting too long could imperil local efforts to ban such sales.
In his statement, Martilli suggests that three letters of non-opposition Reichelt wrote to companies looking to open medical marijuana facilities in West Springfield would allow them to sell recreational marijuana.
Responding to the allegation, Reichelt said it is not clear whether medical marijuana facilities would be able to sell recreational marijuana, because no law has been passed, but that he would oppose such a measure.
"It wouldn't be fair to communities that voted for medical marijuana (and not recreational)," Reichelt said.
News Moderator: Ron Strider 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: West Springfield resident opposed to recreational marijuana criticizes Mayor Will Reichelt's handling of industry | masslive.com
Author: Sean Teehan
Contact: Contact Us - MassLive Media Solutions
Photo Credit: Getty
Website: Massachusetts Local News, Breaking News, Sports and Weather - MassLive.com
