Another cannabis dispensary proposed for Framingham's marijuana retail district

Jesse Collings, MetroWest Daily News
·3 min read
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The owners of GreenCare Collective Inc. cannabis company want to open a new recreational dispensary on Route 9 Framingham, adding to a growing list of marijuana businesses in the city's marijuana retail establishment overlay district

The Millbury-based company proposes a 3,500-square-foot facility at 1154 Worcester Road (Route 9). The site is currently the home of Phillip DePalma Salon and Day Spa; the building would be sold to a new owner, then leased to GreenCare and the salon would move elsewhere

GreenCare Collective recently opened a 100,000-square-foot cultivation facility in Millbury. The group has applied for a Community Host Agreement in Framingham, and is meeting with the city’s Marijuana Advisory Team to discuss a potential agreement.

More: UpTop Dispensary trying to reimagine cannabis retail experience

Another new cannabis dispensary has been proposed for Framingham, with another spot on Route 9 being tabbed as the next spot for a pot shop to pop up.
Another new cannabis dispensary has been proposed for Framingham, with another spot on Route 9 being tabbed as the next spot for a pot shop to pop up.

Cultivation facility is in Millbury, MA

“We have extensive experience in the cannabis industry and we are currently distributing our products across the state at various retail facilities,” Charles Smith, an attorney representing GreenCare Collective, said during a Sept. 15 Planning Board meeting. “We’ve been meeting with the Marijuana Advisory Team in Framingham, and we are hosting a community outreach meeting in the near future.”

The company operates one dispensary at the same address of its cultivation facility in Millbury at 12 Latti Farm Road.

Six dispensaries operate in Framingham. All but one of which is on Route 9.

Nova Farms LLC Framingham, a dispensary that opened last February, is in a former Papa Gino's at 1137 Worcester Road,  just a few doors down from the potential GreenCare Collective store.

More: Three recreational marijuana businesses in Framingham, three hope to join them

Framingham is a hot marijuana spot

Framingham has become a hot spot for pot shops for a number of reasons. The shopping mecca on Route 9 is attractive to retailers from all industries, and marijuana is no exception. The area along Worcester Road, which is part of the marijuana retail establishment overlay district, is a thin slice of zoning that enables retail establishments such as the proposed GreenCare Collective shop to be built by right.

“It’s Route 9; the number of vehicle trips on that road per day makes it very attractive,” Framingham Director of Planning and Community Development Sarkis Sarkisian said. “Plus, since places can be built by right, the process is fast tracked. Applicants still need to get approval from the state, from the mayor, from the city council, so there is still a lot to do, but it’s pretty quick.”

If GreenCare receives a Community Host Agreement with the city, the Planning Board would then be able to approve the application for the establishment. Because the site is near Baiting Brook, the group also may have to get approval from the Conservation Commission, depending on the extent of renovations that would need to be done to property.

What's next for GreenCare Collective?

The Planning Board issued a continuance on the proposal, and will discuss it again at its next meeting on Oct. 6. During the Sept. 15 meeting, the board was mainly concerned with parking and how the new store will fit in with its neighbors. Planning Board member Thomas Buie said he would like to see the dispensary plans be considerate of a neighboring restaurant, Samba Steak & Sushi.

“I’d encourage trying to match that front, because it essentially is a shared property,” Boyle said.

Sarkisian said that over time, the expectations and concerns for recreational marijuana shops have changed and become simpler in some ways.

“If you remember the public comments that were first made a few years ago, one of the biggest concerns was about the amount of traffic in parking," he said. "There were some news reports about traffic jams at some of the first dispensaries to open up. Now that we have been through the process, we are looking at this current proposal and thinking about if they need as much parking as they currently have.”

This article originally appeared on MetroWest Daily News: Cannabis shop proposed for Route 9 Framingham by Greencare Collective