Brick medical marijuana dispensary vote delayed until next year

Mike Davis | Asbury Park Press

Show Caption Hide Caption Brick medical marijuana: Residents have their say Brick medical marijuana: Residents have their say

BRICK - The fate of a proposed medical marijuana dispensary and cultivation facility won't be known until at least January.

The zoning board Monday postponed a meeting due to overcrowding.

The meeting room at the Brick municipal building was already at capacity 30 minutes before the Board of Adjustment was scheduled to meet. While the next hearing date isn't known yet, it will definitely be held in a larger location.

PREVIOUSLY ON...: Will Brick OK the first medical marijuana dispensary at the Jersey Shore?

Medical marijuana dispensary supporters, most wearing green stickers reading "I support medical marijuana in Brick," began fleeing the room once it became clear that postponement was an option.

And many of the project opponents wearing blue "say no to medical marijuana" stickers erupted into applause — some even shouted "yes!" — when board chairman Harvey Langer officially announced the meeting would be postponed.

The reason for the applause? Both Jersey Shore THC principal Anne Davis and her attorney, former Assemblyman John Paul Doyle, made it clear that they sought a vote before Nov. 30, as the Department of Health required all medical marijuana dispensary applicants to obtain municipal approval by then.

Both municipal approval and one of the state licenses would be required in order for the proposed Brick medical marijuana dispensary to operate.

Despite the delay, Jersey Shore THC co-owner Anne Davis said the delay wouldn't stop the plans for the dispensary.

"Everything is good. We're going to keep proceeding as planned," she said shortly after the meeting adjourned.

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Supporters and opponents of the proposed Brick medical marijuana dispensary have only dug their heels in further over the last month. Opponents have accused dispensary supporters of stealing their lawn signs reading "say no to rezoning, medical marijuana dispensary."

“No more clapping. This is not a movie theater or a show on Broadway,” Langer said, referring to the October meeting, when both sides would regularly break into applause after statements they agreed with. “Have respect for each other. I know people want this and don’t want this, but this is not a playground. We’re not going to fight with each other.

"This is literally a court of law," he continued.

According to the state Health Department, there are over 37,000 registered New Jersey medical marijuana patients, more than double the amount of patients registered at the end of 2017. The spike is largely attributed to new qualifying conditions added to the program, mandated by Gov. Phil Murphy.

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As of October, nearly 17 percent of all patients live in Monmouth or Ocean counties, but the nearest dispensaries are in Woodbridge or Egg Harbor Township, a commute of an hour or more that many patients make multiple times per week.

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Mike Davis; @byMikeDavis: 732-643-4223; mdavis@gannettnj.com