MADISON — Town voters approved an ordinance Tuesday that limits the location of outpatient substance use disorder treatment programs in Madison, following months of discussions sparked by a company’s plan to open such a clinic in the center of town.
At a special town meeting at Main Street Middle School, voters also approved an update to the town’s ordinances related to medical marijuana retail sales.
The meeting, scheduled to begin at 7 p.m., was delayed until 7:18 p.m. because officials were waiting for enough people — a quorum — to arrive, Town Manager Denise Ducharme said Wednesday. Madison ordinances require a quorum of 50 people for special town meetings.
After a sufficient number of voters arrived, it was business as usual, Ducharme said, with voting on the ordinances conducted by secret ballot.
The ordinance on outpatient substance use disorder treatment programs passed 55-10.
Under the approved ordinance, Chapter 170, such programs could only be located on the eastern side of the Madison Business Gateway, a business park off Route 148, and parcels on the 2 1/2-mile stretch of U.S. Route 201 between White School House Road and the Skowhegan line.
On U.S. Route 201, the facility would need to be at least 500 feet from neighboring structures.
The proposed ordinance also specifies other requirements for outpatient substance use disorder treatment centers, such as the list of information a license applicant must submit to the town’s code enforcement officer, and the application review process for the Planning Board and the Board of Selectmen.
Town officials crafted the ordinance after receiving a petition from more than 200 residents questioning the proposed location of a treatment center at 2 Old Point Ave., the former Taylor’s Drug Store. At the town meeting in June, voters also passed a 180-day moratorium that prohibited the opening of facilities that dispense controlled substances.
Tennessee-based Acadia Healthcare was under contract to buy the Old Point Avenue property, in the center of Madison, and planned to open a clinic offering a variety of treatments and services, including medication-assisted treatment for substance use disorder.
Acadia has since decided to look at other locations that comply with the new ordinance, according to Ducharme.
The two articles related to marijuana sales, in Chapter 180, passed 54-12 and 55-8.
The first article was a revision to the existing part of the ordinance. It specifies that the town has opted out of permitting adult use, or recreational, cannabis establishments.
The second article specifies the town is opting in to allow retail establishments that sell medical marijuana.
At the town meeting in June, voters approved an article to opt in to allow retail sales and have town officials develop the new ordinance.
The ordinance allows the town to issue three permits for medical marijuana shops. It also specifies that medical marijuana shops cannot be located within 1,000 feet of designated safe zones, such as recreation areas.
Five medical marijuana retail stores now operate in Madison, including in a safe zone, Ducharme said earlier this month. The new ordinance, even with its limit on permits, will not affect the existing businesses, according to Ducharme.
The town developed the updated ordinance after the Maine Office of Cannabis Policy informed town officials that Madison was out of compliance. An ordinance passed in June 2018 prohibiting retail sales of marijuana did not explicitly allow for retail medical marijuana sales, meaning existing stores selling the product were doing so illegally, Ducharme said.
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