Whately Select Board, pot cultivation group agree on host community agreement

WHATELY — Stephen Herbert returned to the Select Board last Wednesday night to agree to the terms of the host community agreement for a proposed marijuana cultivation facility on Route 5, just south of the Whately Diner.

The agreement allows the group, Urban Grown, to file with the state Cannabis Control Commission for a location change for its provisional license.

“I did forward a revised sketch to (Town Administrator Brian Domina) this morning of the layout of the property and how we will do it,” Herbert said. “And we’ll phase it in over four different phases.”

Herbert said the group currently has a license for up to 10,000 square feet, and once some crops are grown, it can petition the Cannabis Control Commission to increase that limit.

“Most projects start small and intend to expand,” explained Select Board member Joyce Palmer-Fortune. “That’s been the case for at least one other, maybe more, of the HCAs we’ve approved.”

Following a few questions about the plan from board members and other officials, Palmer-Fortune clarified that a host community agreement doesn’t mean a site plan is perfect, but that the group and town have arrived at a financial agreement. Other committees and boards will review the project through different lenses.

“It’s been the practice of the board to look at the project as a whole to see that that is what would be good for the town,” she said. “Like with most projects, there’s still some questions.”

Palmer-Fortune said the host community agreement is essentially the same as other agreements with marijuana cultivation site proposals, including the 3% local impact fee, and the educational and charitable donations.

“We’ve been very consistent across the board for any establishments,” she said.

Stephen and Michael Herbert had come before the Hatfield Planning Board in 2019 for use of a 6.8-acre property at 55 Depot Road, which would have supplied medical and recreational dispensaries in Massachusetts. But it was later withdrawn after significant concerns were raised by nearby residents of Depot and Cronin Hill roads.