WHATELY — Greenjeans Farms met with the Zoning Board of Appeals and Planning Board over the past week to present a revised site plan that does not require a zoning variance for a marijuana cultivation facility at Long Plain Farm.
Both boards opted to continue their meetings with Greenjeans Farms — with the Planning Board waiting on the ZBA issuing a special permit before approving the site plan — after hearing the organization’s revised plan, which addressed the number of greenhouses, revised greenhouse interiors and fire safety. The site is located at 149 Christian Lane, which is 530 feet from Whately Elementary School’s property line and 1,000 feet from the building itself.
At the top of the list of concerns was the interior of three of the existing greenhouses, which extend beyond the 50-foot setback required for marijuana cultivation facilities in Whately’s bylaws. The ZBA asked for a specific plan at November’s meeting, which Greenjeans Farms addressed with a chain-link fence that will block off any part of the building within the setback.
Greenjeans Farms General Manager Julie Beauchemin said an internal barrier would make more financial sense for the current landowners as any sort teardown would be very expensive.
“We’re proposing to put a chain-link metal fence inside the greenhouses to really create a physical barrier so no plants or cultivation use would occur outside the 50-foot setbacks,” Beauchemin explained. “The purpose is to not cause the landowner any hardship having to shorten the greenhouses. It’s a lot of work to relocate, there’s water and electric inside them currently and it would be a big financial hardship.”
The company previously applied to use six greenhouses, of which several were already existing, but needed a variance to operate a greenhouse fully inside the 50-foot setback. ZBA Chair Roger Lipton told Greenjeans Farms that the ZBA has been “historically strict on variances” in the past. The revised plan reduces the total number of greenhouses to five with only portions inside the setback.
Beauchemin said Greenjeans Farms has eliminated “4,400 square feet of cultivation use” with its new revisions and this proposal is “a little stronger.”
The company also moved the proposed gravel driveway closer to the greenhouses after consulting with Fire Chief John Hannum to create more room for emergency vehicles, while still having a security fence.
Concerns about the use of iodine and the fan system were also raised by members of the Planning Board, ZBA and community, which Greenjeans Farms will address at the next series of meetings.
The ZBA will conduct a site visit Saturday morning and will continue its hearing on Thursday, Jan. 6, at 6:40 p.m.
Planning Board Chair Don Sluter said Greenjeans Farms will appear before the Planning Board again on Tuesday, Jan. 25, and he is expecting a “bunch of public comments” as several people spoke up during this week’s meeting.
He said the Planning Board would “like to get something done,” but it is all contingent on the ZBA approving the special permit and public comment discussion at its meeting. He added that marijuana businesses in town have yet to take off, despite several companies getting approval.
“Whately’s had a lot of bad luck with marijuana,” Sluter said.
Chris Larabee can be reached at clarabee@recorder.com or 413-930-4081.