Wakefield council leans to discouraging marijuana business

By P.J. GLISSON

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Wakefield - The Wakefield city council voted Monday to have city attorney Ray O'Dea draw up an ordinance stating the city will opt out of allowing marijuana businesses to operate within the city.

City manager Richard Brackney said a related public hearing will be held just prior to the second reading of the ordinance at a future meeting. The council then will vote on the ordinance.

Wakefield's action follows in the footsteps of the cities of Ironwood and Bessemer and of Wakefield Township. The Wakefield planning commission also voted to opt out just before the Wakefield city council meeting.

"The city has no guidelines for this now," said mayor John Granato, who added that by 2020, the state expects to have in place its own laws regarding the licensing of marijuana businesses.

"We can opt in at any time," he said, explaining the city then also could create its own regulations in relation to zoning, etc. "There's a lot of work to be done here. The city has no groundwork."

Although Brackney said no interest in the marijuana business has been expressed yet in Wakefield, he believes opting out now is a way to send a message to anybody coming in who may be "interested in doing something."

In the planning commission meeting, Brackney also specified, "If you opt into the medical (marijuana), you cannot opt out of the recreational, because the facilities are allowed to do both."

The vote passed unanimously in both meetings. Dion DelFavero was absent from the planning commission meeting.