House of Diesel applicants press city after two-year delay; council tables HCA, seeks state response

Members of the New Bedford City Council Committee on Appointments and Briefings on Sept. 16 heard more than an hour of testimony from Shemar James and partners seeking a Host Community Agreement (HCA) for a proposed co‑located adult‑use marijuana product manufacturing site at 301 Herman Melville Blvd. and voted to table the item while asking for a written response from the state enforcement investigator and for the mayor to re‑open the city screening committee.

The applicants said they submitted materials more than two years ago and are accruing occupancy costs while they wait. "We're spending, you know, $2,000 a month to just hold the space," Shemar James told the committee. "So it's getting taxing." Connie Souza, a part owner, said the group has done what the city asked and now seeks a decision: "We come here today to ask you, the this body here, to vote, to issue an HCA to us."

Why it matters: HCAs are the local agreements required before certain cannabis business licenses can proceed. Applicants told the committee the delay has real costs: rent, consultant and legal fees, and lost revenue while state and local steps remain unresolved. Councilors said the lack of a clear timeline and the absence of a state representative at the meeting made the delay unacceptable.

What city officials said: Attorney Eric Jakes, appearing for the solicitor’s office, said the city created a social equity policy (SEP) that the mayor approved in June and that the solicitor’s office filed the required SEP application with the Massachusetts Cannabis Control Commission (CCC) on Aug. 4. Jakes said he could not sign certain licensing documents earlier because they must be sworn under penalty of perjury and because the CCC had outstanding questions. "I placed a phone call to Dan Huber's cell phone in anticipation of this meeting and left a message," Jakes told the committee, adding he would follow up by email to create a written record.

Tyrone Gomes, who has assisted the applicants, outlined the usual timeline used in other municipalities and stressed that the team had completed what typically takes two months but had been waiting more than two years in New Bedford. "We had a community outreach meeting, and it's been 2 years and 2 days," Gomes said.

Planning staff said the city’s planning office accepted the application packet but held the application pending the reconvening of the city’s screening committee. Assistant City Planner Michael McCarthy told the committee the planning office’s role is intake and completeness review; without a functioning screening committee there was no body to advance the application to negotiation.

Council reaction and action: Several councilors, including Councilor Brian K. Gomes and Councilor Ryan Perera, said the delay was unacceptable. After discussion the committee voted to table the matter and approved a related motion requesting that the chair send formal letters to the CCC (copies to named commissioners and the assigned investigator) asking why no representative attended and why the application has not advanced. The committee also requested the mayor reopen the screening committee so intake packets can be processed.

A committee motion to table the HCA and for the solicitor to pursue written follow up passed by voice vote. The committee’s chair said the item will be placed on a future appointments and briefings agenda and asked the solicitor to document his outreach to the CCC and to attempt to secure a state reply within 30 days.

What’s next: Attorney Jakes said he would email and call the CCC investigator, Dan Huber, and that the solicitor’s office would report back. The committee also asked the administration to identify a date to reconvene the screening committee and to notify applicants when it will accept and review HCA packets.