Maynard selectmen approved a host community agreement for NewCann Group, LLC. [Courtesy photo] ▲

NewCann LLC has six months to find a location for its marijuana retail store, according to the Host Community agreement approved Sept. 17 by Selectmen.

For several months selectmen have debated the benefits and drawbacks of signing the agreement without the location, but after Kate Federoff, town counsel, wrote up an agreement that allows selectmen to back out if they don't like the location NewCann finds, they approved it, 4-1, with one amendment. Selectman David Gavin voted against it.

Selectman Justine St. John asked that a sentence be added that would require NewCann to find a satisfactory location within six months or the agreement would be null and void.

David Rabinovitz, managing member and CEO of NewCann, agreed to the stipulation.

This is the first time a community has signed a host community agreement without a location and Gavin didn't think Maynard should be the first.

"I think the commonwealth created the process with a specific intent," he said. "I think it's irresponsible on our part for our community to be swaying away from the rules that were created for the commonwealth."

But Selectman Melissa Levine-Piro pointed out that the rules set out by the Cannabis Control Commission don't require that host community agreements include a location, although one is required before NewCann can apply for a license from the state. In any case, selectmen still have final approval over any location NewCann finds.

Selectman Chairman Chris DiSilva said he had also shown the agreement to an outside lawyer who said it protected the town, so he was ready to OK the host community agreement.

Selectman Armand Diarbekerian said he had been on the fence, but would approve it with a time limit.

The contract was approved by not signed, pending the amended timeline.

"Mr. Gavin we're going to conduct ourselves in a way that you will be happy with the vote," said Rabinovitz.

A more level playing field

In a follow up interview, Rabinovitz said this agreement takes the power away from the landlords.

He pointed to one Metrowest community where 48 people were interested in opening marijuana retail stores. The town had tightly zoned the marijuana district, so there were only eight to 10 possible locations. In addition, the town would only allow two stores. This created a situation where landlords were auctioning off the space to the highest bidder, Rabinovitz said.

"When 48 teams descend on eight landlords, the supply and demand is out of balance," he said.

A better scenario would have been for the town to vet the 48 teams and determine which two would have been the best fit for the town. The town could then have signed two host community agreements, and then told those two teams to find a suitable location and return for final approval, Rabinovitz said.

"It gives the town more control," he said, "[and] the landlord isn't deciding who gets to go before the town. So anybody can go before the town now to see if they are a good fit."

It also helps level the playing field, he said.

It can take several months to hammer out a host community agreement. If towns require a team to secure a location before the agreement is signed, the team can be paying rent for several months on an empty space.

That may be OK for a big business but "the smaller teams can't afford those hits," he said.

Rabinovitz is a team member of one of the six vendors selected by the Cannabis Control Commission to provide training for applicants of the statewide Social Equity Program, to help those applicants get into the marijuana retail business.

Maynard's decision to sign a host community agreement without a location will benefit that group the most, he said.

"They can't compete because landlords control the process," he said. "We are very grateful to the town of Maynard."

The Social Equity Program was launched by the commission in accordance with a state mandate that requires full participation in the regulated marketplace by communities that have been disproportionately harmed by marijuana prohibition.

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