Sussex Borough to allow some marijuana commerce

The Sussex Borough Council agreed on May 4 to allow cannabis commerce in the borough but to restrict the number of licenses given out.

Borough attorney Jonathan Frodello said New Jersey is offering six classes of licenses for cultivation, manufacturing, wholesale sales, retail sales, distribution, and delivery.

Frodello said municipalities can regulate five of the license classes, but it can’t interfere with borough residents having marijuana delivered to them. The borough can define the times and places for cannabis sales among other regulations, he said.

The borough can charge a 2 percent tax on five of the license classes. Wholesalers can be taxed at 1 percent.

Councilman Robert Holowach said he liked the taxation component and was in favor of collecting a 2 percent tax on marijuana sales.

Frodello said most municipalities are amending their zoning ordinances, and that licensing is handled by the state. Any application that doesn’t meet the conditions established by local ordinance would be denied.

However, Frodello said, “denial can’t be arbitrary.”

Still, he said, local councils can establish the number of licenses available in their municipality. Most of the Sussex Borough Council agreed that four licenses would be best for retail business.

“I’m not a fan of blocking it out,” Holowach said. “If you’re not a fan of it, New Jersey is not the place to be because it’s legal. Even if the town says no to marijuana, there’s going to be people walking up and down Main Street smoking it, and there’s not a thing you can do because it’s legal to do.”

He said the four classifications should be limited to one license in the borough.

“We don’t have a lot of manufacturing here in the borough,” Holowach said. “We don’t have a lot of growing, except for Kuperus Farms. It’s not like you’re ever going to see it. It’s behind walls. It’s secure behind fences.”

See related story, “Byram rejects ‘pot shops’ and all other marijuana licenses.”