By AUBREY HAWKE
Waltham Times Contributing Writer
Uma Flowers, a family-run local marijuana dispensary, said it will open its new Waltham store by March 2025. This would be the first marijuana dispensary to open in Waltham, though others are also in the process of opening stores.
Representatives of Uma Flowers spoke at the joint City Council and Board of Survey & Planning public meeting on Tuesday, Nov. 12, seeking a zoning code amendment. Their request was for an extension of allowed hours of operation for marijuana establishments and to “allow the ownership of properties that site marijuana establishments to be transferred.”
Attorney Valerio Romano represented the business and told the council that these amendments would benefit Uma Flowers, other future cannabis businesses in Waltham, and the city itself.
“Ultimately this is about revenue for Waltham,” said Romano referencing tax revenue that would go to the city. “Waltham gets 3% off the top. The more hours and days that we are open, the more money to Waltham.”
Why the Waltham opening is taking longer
Ward 1 Councilor Anthony LaFauci said the council had “approved you two years ago and the perception in the community is that the council was the reason that everything stalled.”
Uma Flowers has two locations currently open, one in Pepperell and one in Lunenburg. Uma Flowers co-founder Priyanka Patel says the process and timeline to opening the Waltham location has been comparable to those locations, with the exception of a traffic study Waltham requested.
Patel explained that the process to open a dispensary anywhere in Massachusetts is inherently long due to strict requirements and processes to get both state and city approvals. Patel feels that the process has been slightly longer in Waltham compared to other towns where she has gone through this process, but that it is reasonable and expected given Waltham is significantly larger than Pepperell or Lunenburg.
Patel was raised in Waltham and is still a resident today. So, for her, opening a Waltham store is more than just a business move.
“It’s going to be good for business, but it also just feels good being able to have my business in my hometown,” Patel told The Times. “It’s a dream come true.”
Questions around request to extend business hours
Some council members found issue with the choice to apply for an extension to business hours when the business has not begun operating yet.
Romano said that Uma Flowers, being the first recreational cannabis dispensary in Waltham, is requesting an extension of hours to be competitive with dispensaries in surrounding towns. The business, and all other potential Waltham dispensaries, currently only have permission from the city to operate from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., Monday through Saturday. Uma Flowers is requesting that it be amended to allow dispensaries to stay open until 10 p.m., seven days a week.
“It’s a little odd to not even be open yet, but ask for an extension of hours and days. That seems odd to me,” said Wayne Keefner, vice chair of the Board of Survey and Planning.
Councilor-at-Large Carlos Vidal said this was “pretty much the first time” he had heard a request to extend hours for a business that was not operational yet. He added that he would like to see the business open before considering a business hours extension.
Romano said they are asking for extended hours now so that when they open they will be able to keep the same hours consistently. He worries that if they had limited hours for the first few months, and then were allowed to extend hours of operation, customers might now know about the time switch.
The council did not vote on the requests but sent them to the Ordinances & Rules Committee which will further examine the matter and work through potential issues before sending it back to the council for an official vote.
Uma Flowers has a few more hoops to jump through with the Cannabis Control Commission before it can open its doors but expects to start welcoming customers by March next year.
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