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WESTFIELD – Continuing its discussion after closing the public hearing on Feb. 5, the Planning Board repeated its concerns about the location of a proposed cannabis cultivation facility at 798 Airport Industrial Road, 120 feet from an active youth soccer field; ultimately, voting it down, 5 to 2. City Planner Jay Vinskey said he had showed the board’s condition of no odor at the property line to the Law Department, and was told that while the determination of no odor is subjective, it was understandable, and no further suggestions were given.
Vinskey also said odor violations would need to be documented by the police department.
Planning Board member John Bowen asked if the responsibility could be put on the applicant to monitor the odor once a month using the cyber sniffer device described at the previous meeting, and leave the city out of it.
Vinskey said for the condition to be enforced, the police department would have to be notified. He said it would be similar to conditions on noise. Vinskey also said the Planning Board could request that the Mayor include the cyber sniffer device as part of the Host Community Agreement.
Planning Board chair William Carellas said since the last meeting, he had visited a local growing operation, and had stood outside at approx. 75 feet from the building, where he could clearly smell the odor of marijuana come and go. He said at 105 feet, he could not detect the odor.
Carellas, who said he was not against the operation, said he believed the odor would travel unless the owners were willing to spend “an awful lot of money” on high end HVAC systems to capture all the smells.
Board member Bernard Puza said he also visited a cultivation facility in Franklin, Mass. He said at 300 feet away, he could smell the marijuana “like it was in my back seat. My feeling is you’re going to be able to get a whiff of that across 202,” he said.
Board member Cheryl Crowe, who also said she was not opposed to the business coming to Westfield, said she was also concerned about the proximity of the business next door.
Vinskey said if the facility was not meeting the condition, they would receive a non-compliance violation, and after repeated violations, the permit could be pulled. He also said the Planning Board could issue a time-limited permit, based on “uncharted territory.”
“I would approve it and condition it as we all discussed. I’d say a year, and see how they do. It’s going to cost them a lot of money on HVAC,” said Board member Robert Goyette.
Carellas said everyone that he has met, has said the business is three times harder and five times more expensive than they thought. He said there is no chance to get it right a second time. “That’s my biggest concern. It’s an enormous financial operation,” he said, adding that it would be easiest to assume no violations and no complaints, but in an imperfect world, there would be complaints all the time. “What would it take for us to pull the permit,” he said.
Vinskey said repeated non-compliance is grounds for revoking the permit.
After discussing whether to continue the discussion, and give the applicant the opportunity to withdraw and resubmit with a more convincing, scientific explanation for odor containment, several members said it was unlikely to change their feeling about the location.
A motion to disapprove the special permit based on adverse olfactory odor passed 5-2.
Vinskey then shared language recommending a 500 foot buffer from parks for marijuana facilities, recommended by the Planning Board at the Feb. 5 meeting. He said a park is defined in the zoning ordinance as an area of land intended for outdoor enjoyment for the general public. He said if the board approved the drafted language, they could submit it to the City Council for consideration.
“I am for this. It will be an uphill battle, but it’s something we should do,” Carellas said.
