Cornwall talks cannabis options

CORNWALL — A meeting of Cornwall’s Planning and Zoning (PNZ) Commission on April 11 covered a full agenda that included considerable changes in town.

The Zoom meeting drew 22 attendees to hear updates on the town’s approach to recreational cannabis, approval of zoning changes to the “Pink House” in West Cornwall, and the results of a three-year overhaul of Cornwall’s PNZ regulatory document.

Town Planning Consultant Janell Mullen provided a detailed review of recent updates on adult-use recreational cannabis in Connecticut and how these changes may impact Cornwall.

“The state has really been updating and amending over time as the licenses have become more relevant,” said Mullen.

Mullen explained there are currently four types of licenses that can be issued by the state: growing, manufacturing, sales, and delivery.

“There is opportunity to decide based on what the town needs,” said Mullen. “Should there be any license types for adult recreation cannabis? Where? And which ones specifically?”

Cornwall has placed a moratorium on cannabis licensure that is set to expire Nov. 1, 2023. Before that time, Cornwall must have a plan in place on how to proceed with cannabis licenses.

Mullen said that permitting retail licensure could generate municipal sales taxes for Cornwall.

“I believe it’s at 3%,” said Mullen on the municipal sales tax rate. She added that in the first week of recreational sales in Connecticut, retailers statewide grossed $2 million. “So, if you take 3% of that and then disperse it across the municipalities who benefitted from that, that’s a week of sales.”

The commission decided to put forth a survey to the townspeople to gauge public opinion on this issue before determining how to proceed. Residents can complete the survey at www.surveymonkey.com/r/6253JB8

“We’ll see what the townspeople want,” said Commission Chair Anna Timell. “It’s complex and it’s going to take a while for everything to settle out.”

The commission heard a proposal for a permit for change of use in the Pink House in West Cornwall during this meeting. Jeff Morgan of the West Cornwall Development Group (WCDG) reviewed plans to restore the building and bring two new retail spaces plus a two-bedroom residential apartment to West Cornwall.

“We had a common mission which was to restore what used to be a vibrant commercial town center in West Cornwall,” said Morgan. “We’ve already done structural restoration and remediation of the building to make it safe.”

Morgan said their goals were consistent with the historic use of the property.

“What we call the Pink House was actually the village inn and was really a village hub,” said Morgan.

WCDG purchased the building in 2019 after it had fallen into a state of disrepair following a fire in the early 2000’s. WCDG began restoration of the property by first opening a restaurant in the building at the rear of the lot: Frank. Food Company.

“We wanted to build more hospitality back into West Cornwall to help other businesses open up as well,” said Morgan. “The plan we have for the Pink House itself has already been approved by Torrington Area Health.”

Morgan said he expects construction on the Pink House to be completed this September and potential tenants have already expressed interest about the retail spaces. Much of the required updates had been previously approved by PNZ in 2020 when WCDG sought approval for the restaurant.

“Most of the development of the property has actually already happened. All the parking has been completed, all of the infrastructure has been put in including two major septic systems: one for the restaurant itself and a second for the Pink House,” said Morgan.

Their current proposal included the addition of three more parking spaces, one of which will be handicap, and the approval of new signage. The commission pointed out that one of the proposed signs near the road was on state land and would require state approval. The remaining changes were approved unanimously.

“I think you folks have done an outstanding job,” said Timell. “We should be so lucky as to have overflow parking in the new business district in West Cornwall.”

Timell also provided a recap of the three-year effort to overhaul PNZ’s regulation documents.

“Zoning regulations are not static. They have to respond to historical changes and socio-cultural changes,” said Timell.

Timell said the commission added 25 new definitions, updated regulations to bring them in line with recently changed state laws, created hot links to the state regulations, and rearranged the chapters to provide a more logical progression.

“We worked really hard to avoid changing anything that would affect the original intent of the original regulations,” said Timell.

The revised regulations will be presented at a public hearing on May 9 at 7 p.m. at the Cornwall Library.