HARTFORD – Bennington, Burlington and Brattleboro approved it. The same goes for Windsor, Strafford and over 20 other communities in Vermont.

And there’s a good chance, according to Hartford Selectboard vice chairman Joe Major, Hartford voters will have to decide whether they want to approve it as well.

The “it” in this case is the retail sale of recreational marijuana, which the Vermont legislature legalized – and Gov. Phil Scott had the law passed – effective October 2022.

“It is quite possible that Hartford will ask its residents on (city meeting day) March 2022 if they wish to allow cannabis sales in Hartford,” Major said, introducing the subject during a discussion at Town Hall Monday night in Hartford. High school.

The meeting, hosted by the Selectboard and the Hartford Community Coalition, brought together a panel of local experts on the issue so voters “can make an informed decision before heading to the voting booth,” Major said.

Like the statewide debate surrounding the legalization of recreational cannabis itself a few years ago – Vermont law requires cities and towns to “agree” to retail sales being allowed to the within their borders – the question in Hartford is polarizing and sparks heated arguments for and against.

But there was little agreement, even on the facts, among the panel’s experts.

A claim that retail cannabis sales will help reduce opioid use and boost the local economy, including jobs for young workers, has been met by claims that property values ​​have declined by dispensaries and that cannabis poses increased health risks to minors.

Perhaps more decisively, a expectation of additional tax revenue for Hartford is not supported by the current tax code. Five years ago, Hartford voters approved a 1% local options sales tax on rooms, meals and alcohol, but it does not include other retail sales, including marijuana .

Proponents were, however, convinced that cannabis sales would always bring economic benefit at the local level.

“The conversation is basically the same in every city, that is, do we want a store? Said David Silberman, lawyer for Middlebury and state spokesperson for cannabis legalization, who was elected Grand Bailiff of Addison County in 2020. “In my town, the business community was overwhelmingly in favor , especially downtown merchants, because they want foot traffic.

Regardless of whether an individual city approves store sales, a neighboring community can, he said, so “people are going to get cannabis one way or another.”

“Personally, I would prefer them to have it tested, labeled and guaranteed for quality,” he said.

Even though the city does not have a local option tax to capture revenue from cannabis, there are ancillary benefits to the local economy, said Stephanie Waterman, owner of White River Growpro, which sells growing supplies. .

Waterman, who and her husband have run their business in White River Junction since 2014, said she was considering getting a “retail nursery license” and called the legalization of cannabis “a growth opportunity in the world. employment in the city, especially to attract young people, which is a problem in Vermont in general.

Besides the employees needed for retail, Waterman said other cannabis-related jobs will include “well-paying” positions in finance – “there is a lot of money to be managed in these companies,” he said. she noted – cultivation, lab testing, processing and “budtenders.”

“In the model we were looking at, that would create 25 new jobs in the first few months and increase from there,” she said. “It is important.”

The Vermont Cannabis Control Board, which was created to regulate the cannabis industry in the state, will begin accepting approval and license applications from cannabis growers, processors, test labs, wholesalers and retailers in the spring. . Retailers are the last in line, however, with applications accepted starting in September and the first licenses are expected to be issued in October, according to the Control Board.

The benefits of allowing local sales of cannabis, however, have been disputed by professionals in the medical and social service fields, as well as by some in the public who have cast a skeptical eye on the data provided by the industry and a cautious approach.

“When the (cannabis) industry is the one that tells you how it all works and promises you that you’re going to make money as a city … and your property’s value is going to go up and you’re going to have good jobs.” paid… you have to understand that this is all speculative, ”said Alan Budney, professor of psychiatry and biomedical data science at the Geisel School of Medicine in Dartmouth, which studies cannabis use disorders.

When Budney called retail cannabis stores “essentially a pharmacy” and raised the question of the risk they pose to underage consumption, some members of the public erupted in protests.

“You think 22-year-olds won’t try to sell it to 18-year-olds and 18-year-olds won’t try to buy it from the store -” Budney said, before he could end the sentence and be interrupted by the participants shouting “Whoa” and leading the Selectboard Major to intervene “Stop!” Stop! ”To the public.

Like alcohol and vaping, minors often have their own assumptions about cannabis, warned Janet Potter, an advisor for the student aid program at Hartford schools, and people need to recognize the public accountability that would facilitate the access to cannabis.

“It’s not about whether we can access it or not. It’s about whether we can educate people about it, because right now I hear kids saying that weed isn’t a drug, it’s a plant. I hear them say that weed is not dangerous, it is healthy. It’s like eating your green vegetables, ”Potter said. “I mean, we need a lot of education.”

The spectators were no less divided than the panelists.

Miriam Wood, of White River Junction, who said she was looking to open a dispensary in Vermont, presented the issue of legalized sales as one that would lead to greater public safety, not less.

“It is imperative for me that our streets are safe and that this is done in a safe manner and with respect and responsiveness. … The stores are going to open one place or another and hopefully I can open in Hartford. And I think it would be good for our city, ”said Wood.

But Hartford Selectboard member Lannie Collins, who was in the audience, said it was ‘show me the money’.

“If we can’t make money as a city from its sale – that’s what draws attention to what I’ve seen – I don’t understand what the benefit is,” said Collins.

Contact John Lippman at [email protected]