Meowy Jane, a Portland-based cannabis shop which has had cultivation operations in Standish since 2016, asked the town's Planning Board to allow it to convert part of its existing operations from medical to adult recreational use.
Representing Meowy Jane before the Planning Board were co-owner Joseph Albert, and Jill Cohen, a lawyer from Verrill Dana who specializes in cannabis. Albert and Cohen presented the board with a site plan review application that seeks to convert part of the existing cultivation operation, initially around 1,000 square feet, from medical to adult use. In addition to the cultivation changes, additional security equipment will also need to be installed in order to be compliant with state law.
According to Cohen, there will be no public facing changes to the indoor cultivation facility; there will be no public access or retail sales. Rather, the business would simply be converting certain flower rooms to co-locate medical cultivation with adult use cultivation, which is legal under Maine law. These changes would put Meowy Jane in a Tier 2 cultivation license, according to the state. Standish currently allows Tier 1 and 2 cultivation licenses.
A Tier 2 license, Cohen explained, would allow Albert to cultivate up to 7,000 square feet, well above his current maximum of 2,000, the minimum required space for a Tier 2. The tier class would be measured based on the amount of space that the canopy and tables cover. Albert said that Meowy Jane didn't technically need the 2,000 square feet yet, but over time, if they switch completely over to adult use, it would go to just above 2,000.
Read more at The Portland Press Herald