The city’s negotiations with Alternative Therapies Group to build a medical marijuana dispensary are moving forward. Mayor James J. Fiorentini will ask City Council on Tuesday to approve a host community agreement with the company
According to the draft agreement, ATG plans to offer the city 3 percent of its gross revenues in its first five years of operation and $50,000 per year to a charity of the city’s choice.
Click image for Haverhill City Council agenda.
City Council meets at 7 p.m. in the Theodore A. Pelosi Jr. Council Chambers on the second floor of City Hall. The meeting is open to the public.
The mayor has signed a letter of non-opposition, a state requirement for the company to continue to negotiate.
The host agreement has changed slightly since ATG was promised the non-opposition letter. Originally, the company planned to pay $100,000 and 1.25 percent of its gross proceeds in its first year, followed by a 3 percent of gross proceeds payment in the subsequent four years. The original charitable donation was to be $25,000.
If the city curtails the dispensary’s operations to less than seven days a week, the share of the company’s proceeds given to the city will fall to 2 percent, according to the proposed agreement.
The council’s approval is needed to sign the host city agreement, which triggers the special permit process, which will require ATG to appear before the council and Planning Board for site reviews.
Alternative Therapies Group seeks to build in the Medical Marijuana Overlay District, located in the area between Research and Computer drives, off Broadway.
Councilors also are expected to discuss a moratorium on approvals for recreational marijuana sales in the city until the state Cannabis Control Commission issues its final regulations and city officials have time to review them.