'It's coming.' What Bourne marijuana business advocates plan to do after failed petition.

BUZZARDS BAY — Recreational marijuana sales advocates want to cooperate with the Bourne Planning Board and town staff to draft a new zoning bylaw regulating dispensaries — one would pass muster at a town meeting, possibly as soon as this summer.

The Select Board likes the idea.

The board on May 23 voted 5-0 to direct Town Administrator Marlene McCollem and Town Planner Jennifer Copeland to work with the Planning Board on a zoning bylaw effort.

Board members said that the town's elected Planning Board is favored to work on cannabis zoning efforts instead of a special task force as advanced by a former Select Board member.

The nine-member, elected Planning Board decided on May 25 the collaborative approach was a good idea, promising “an open discussion” and “fluid review” of various bylaw possibilities submitted in advance to the town planning office.

“We’ll try to discuss this in a timely manner,” Planning Board Chair Daniel Doucette said.

Why is the issue of recreational cannabis sales coming up now in Bourne?

On May 1, a citizen petition to allow recreational marijuana sales in the town of Bourne was narrowly defeated at the special and annual town meeting.

The 249-248 vote on marijuana sales also recorded one abstention. The tally prompted gasps all around and groans from marijuana enthusiasts along with their "We’ll be back" pledge. Many quickly departed the auditorium at Bourne High School after the vote.

The May 1 vote represented the fourth attempt to secure approval for commercial marijuana retail stores in Bourne. Edward Dow, a cannabis businessman, said Bourne outlets would present no danger to children. And Steven Strojny of Monument Beach urged residents “to vote the facts, not the scare tactics.”

There are 15 recreational marijuana establishments on the Cape and Islands that are authorized to sell to the public, as of late April, according to the Cannabis Control Commission.

More on Bourne marijuana retail sales: Bourne town meeting rejects retail pot sales again - by single vote. Here's what happened.

Seven Cape towns have banned shops from operating within their borders.

Massachusetts voters passed a ballot initiative in November of 2016 legalizing adult-use marijuana in the state.

Cannabis business interests will return

For now, the Bourne ban on recreational pot sales remains in effect. But Strojny, a former Planning Board member, said proponents will return. The idea is to create a new palatable bylaw that is equitable for marijuana business proponents and weed opponents alike. “As well as protecting the town’s best interest and affording a reasonable business climate,” he said.

This, he said, can be done through the elected Planning Board. If it does not work out, a private petition article could also be filed again to repeal the Bourne dispensaries ban, along with another article to advance a bylaw replacement crafted by the marijuana business supporters.

Strojny, however, said this need not occur. He suggests Bourne dispensaries could eventually fulfill customer demand and fill town coffers.

“We’ve met with the town manager and the town planner," he told the Select Board on May 23. "Nothing is etched in stone now. The repeal of the ban is coming. Perhaps not next month. But it’s coming.”

A strong town-sponsored bylaw is needed, a town leader said

Newly elected Select Board Chair Mary Jane Mastrangelo said the town must prepare for any sudden town meeting with recreational marijuana sales again on the warrant via a private petition article.

“If that happens, a stronger town-sponsored bylaw is needed,” Mastrangelo said.

A new marijuana-control bylaw effort remains a Planning Board function, said Select Board member Melissa Ferretti.

“It can’t be unreasonable or impractical,” she said. “We want a climate in which business can succeed.”

Mastrangelo said a new bylaw should include a special permit provision to assure the community “that appropriate locations are set for any dispensary.” She said such sites from Carver and Wareham to Mashpee are controlled by special permit provisions.

Strojny, however, favors the creation of a town zoning overlay map that would delineate areas exactly where pot dispensaries could be set up.

Planning Board member Christopher Farrell told the Select Board his committee is authorized to create zoning bylaws, and that the process would be public and televised. A special task force on marijuana, he suggested, could lead “to the possibility of things going on behind the scenes.”

There are three suitable places in Bourne for cannabis retail stores, said one proponent

Strojny told the Planning Board that retail recreational cannabis dispensaries “will create a cash flow in the millions of dollars for the town as the years roll along.” He said downtown Buzzards Bay, MacArthur Boulevard, also known as Route 28, and a section of Sagamore would seem suitable for dispensaries.

Planning Board members, meanwhile, said any bylaw prepared for town meeting review should not be crafted to the extent that visual appeal outweighs technical aspects of dispensary review during the special permit process.

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This article originally appeared on Cape Cod Times: Bourne town leaders plan pot bylaw, after 4th attempt at legal sales