Gorham voters opt in for marijuana sales and consumption, overturning town board decision

Mike Murphy, MPNnow
·2 min read
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GORHAM — Voters in Gorham on Tuesday night voted against a Town Board law opting out of allowing the retail sale and consumption of cannabis in town.

That means the sale and onsite consumption of cannabis will be allowed in town after all.

According to Town Clerk Darby Perrotte, 153 votes were cast in opposition to the opt-out local law and 115 votes in favor of it.

Late last year, the Gorham Town Board voted 3-1 to opt out of allowing adult-use marijuana retail dispensaries and consumption sites, which are otherwise allowed under New York state law. The board had until Dec. 31 to make the opt-out decision.

Because of the result of Tuesday’s vote, that local law does not get filed and the cannabis issue is not included on the general election ballot, according to Perrotte.

An effort to bring a public vote on whether the town of Gorham will allow marijuana retail sales and lounges proved successful for Ann Marie and Chuck St. George (pictured with Patrick Hampton at left) at their St. George’s Grocery & Deli and Pizza Sangiorgi in Gorham.
An effort to bring a public vote on whether the town of Gorham will allow marijuana retail sales and lounges proved successful for Ann Marie and Chuck St. George (pictured with Patrick Hampton at left) at their St. George’s Grocery & Deli and Pizza Sangiorgi in Gorham.

Ann Marie St. George, owner of St. George’s Grocery & Deli and Pizza Sangiorgi in Gorham, helped lead an effort to push for the public vote.

“What was really awesome is the number of people who kept thanking us for bringing it to a public vote,” St. George said. “That was pretty cool.”

More:Cannabis sales to kick off in NY in 2022. How you can apply to sell it

Rebels? Citizens challenge Gorham Town Board on marijuana sales

St. George said communities can benefit in several ways, including from added revenue and the promise of a safe product for consumers. Ontario County would receive 1% of a tax on gross cannabis sales revenues and Gorham, as well as other municipalities that allow it, would get 3%. Revenue also would go toward education and drug treatment programs.

The state’s portion from marijuana sales is divided three ways: 40% goes to education; 40% to a new Community Grants Reinvestment Fund; and the remaining 20% to drug treatment programs.

Now that Gorham is essentially opted in, other towns in Ontario County remain opted out, including Bristol; Canandaigua; East Bloomfield; Farmington; Hopewell; Manchester; Naples; Richmond; Seneca; South Bristol; and West Bloomfield

The village of Shortsville opted out, with all other villages in the county allowing both sales and sites except for the village of Victor. The town and village of Victor allow dispensaries, but not consumption sites.

The city of Canandaigua allows dispensaries and not consumption sites. The city of Geneva allows both.

More:Here are all 600 New York localities that said no to cannabis sales. Look up your community.

This article originally appeared on MPNnow: Gorham voters opt in for marijuana sales, overturning town board law