Marijuana cafes will likely be coming to Massachusetts next year.
The Cannabis Control Commission — the state agency tasked with crafting regulations for the legal pot industry — on Monday approved, through preliminary vote, rules that would allow for on-site consumption of marijuana.
Members of the commission were meeting for their first day of public deliberation of policy. The rules they approved will be incorporated into a document that the commission will then have to approve again before they become draft regulations. From there, the commission will hold public hearings and then will vote again on any changes to the regulations before a March deadline to have those rules finalized.
The rules voted on Monday contain provisions for certain licenses for “social consumption,” including business offering services like restaurants, spas, movie theaters and yoga studios.
At least one local resident has been considering such a business. Easthampton’s Karima Rizk, who spoke to the Gazette earlier this week, hopes to open a high-end cannabis coffeehouse called Cafe Vert next year in the city.
The Cannabis Control Commission is scheduled to vote again next week to officially make the rules discussed on Monday into draft regulations.
Dusty Christensen can be reached at dchristensen@gazettenet.com.
Editor’s note: This story was changed at 2:30 on Dec. 13, 2017, to correct the spelling of Karima Rizk’s name.