SHREWSBURY – A marijuana courier hopes to open this spring.
During the Dec. 20 Select Board meeting, the board unanimously voted to approve Town Manager Kevin Mizikar to sign a Host Community Agreement with Finest Trees LLC.
The host community agreement for the business will outline the rules and responsibilities between the business and town.
Co-owner of Finest Trees LLC Rebecca Yarnie said she is not sure how long it will take to receive final licensure and begin construction of their business. However, she said the office could open this April.
“We just want to thank Shrewsbury for this opportunity,” fellow co-owner Daniel Yarnie said.
What was proposed
In April 2018, Town Meeting approved retail sales of marijuana in Shrewsbury, but only if the applicant obtained a special permit from the Planning Board and met certain zoning restrictions.
According to Mizikar, Finest Trees LLC has “gone through the town’s laid out process,” which includes site analysis and meeting with the Town Manager’s office and a variety of department heads, who will “oversee and influence operations to the extent necessary.”
Last January, Finest Trees LLC received pre-certification from the Cannabis Control Commission (CCC) for a marijuana courier license.
The owners are proposing to construct a 1,000-square-foot stand-alone building at 34-36 Harrington Avenue for administrative operations and delivery vehicles.
According to Finest Trees’ attorney David Ullian, marijuana and marijuana products would not be cultivated, manufactured, stored, available for sale or consumed at the site and the office would be used for administrative purposes only.
“If you think about it like DoorDash or Grubhub, that type of model where we are essentially just providing a pickup and delivery to homes for people who have already placed their orders with retailers,” Ullian said during a Select Board meeting Oct. 25.
At that time, Select Board members voiced their concerns about the project.
Select Board Chair Moe DePalo asked how many vehicles would be parked on the site and if they would remain there overnight.
Ullian said the business would “start with one or two vehicles” housed on the site overnight.
He added that there would not be any products left in the cars overnight. Ullian noted that if there were products that could not be delivered during the day, they would be returned to the retailer.
Member Michelle Conlin raised concerns about the company’s signage. Specifically, she asked if the signage on the building and vehicles could confuse people into thinking that Finest Trees is a marijuana retailer.
Regarding the vehicles, Ullian said state regulations prohibit “any kind of markings” that would indicate it is a vehicle used to transport marijuana.
He added that Finest Trees vehicles would be a solid color without any branding.
“It’s going to be a very discreet vehicle,” Ullian said.
The building could include a sign that advertises the name of the company, but Ullian said it would not light up because they are not aiming to attract customers to the office building.
In order to complete the process of obtaining a full marijuana courier license, the business must now obtain a special permit from the Planning Board and receive final licensure by the state Cannabis Control Commision, according to Mizikar.
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