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Applicant proposes allowing three medical cannabis shops to convert to adult-use; Planning Board delays hearing to gather more information
Summary
Joel Pepin, owner and applicant, told the Wells Planning Board he wants to let the town’s three existing medical dispensaries choose to operate under adult‑use licenses without increasing the number of retail stores; the board voted to continue the workshop 30 days to gather police input and parking data.
Joel Pepin, the owner and applicant, told the Wells Planning Board on Aug. 19 that his company is asking the town to let the three businesses already approved as medical cannabis dispensaries choose whether to operate under medical or adult‑use licenses, “so it'd be either or,” he said.
The Planning Board received the land‑use change application and held an extended discussion with Pepin and board members about zoning, parking, public safety and enforcement. Pepin said the proposal would not increase the number of retail stores the town has already approved and that his company would continue to serve medical patients if the procedural process or town vote prevented adult‑use conversion: “If this ends up not going through in Wells…we're gonna continue to move forward with a medical retail dispensary,” he said.
Board members pressed Pepin on site‑specific issues. Several members raised concerns about parking at a previously approved corner site and whether converting that location to adult use would increase customer traffic enough to trigger a site‑plan amendment or specific parking requirements. One member recommended traffic studies and a parking standard tied to any new use. The board also discussed putting an explicit prohibition on on‑site consumption into ordinance language.
Pepin and others addressed federal policy questions. When a board member cited recent restrictions by payment processors and said federal enforcement remains an issue, Pepin responded by pointing to federal rulemaking activity: “The DEA has come out and they’ve acknowledged that cannabis being under schedule 1 is inappropriate, and they’ve recommended that it be moved to schedule 3,” he said, adding that formal changes had not yet taken effect.
Planning staff and members noted that a town cannot prohibit delivery under state law, so out‑of‑town delivery services could still serve Wells residents if the town opted out of adult‑use retail. Board members asked the police chief’s views on enforcement and impaired driving and requested a traffic/parking analysis be provided for the sites that might change use.
Action: The board voted to receive the application and later moved to continue the workshop for 30 days to collect additional information, including the police chief’s comments and any traffic/parking data. The continuation passed unanimously.
What’s next: The Planning Board intends to reconvene the workshop after the 30‑day period with requested information and consider scheduling a public hearing or making ordinance recommendations to the Board of Selectmen.
