STANDISH — It will be at least 180 days before marijuana retail stores and social clubs could be allowed in Standish or Windham. 

The Standish and Windham town councils both voted unanimously Tuesday night to extend their temporary bans on marijuana retail establishments and social clubs for another six months. The towns previously passed moratoriums on these types of establishments in response to uncertainty surrounding Question 1 from the November 2016 ballot. 

Question 1 was narrowly passed by voters and is now law. However, the Legislature is currently working with state agencies to decide how to implement that law. 

Standish passed its original moratorium on Nov.  1, 2016, and Windham passed its on Nov.  22.  

There was minimal discussion on the extension during Standish’s emergency council meeting on the subject. Councilor Michael Blanck spoke to explain the purpose of the extension.  

“This is just re-upping a moratorium that was put into place Nov. 1, 2016, so we cannot have a businesses opening up in Standish that has anything to do with recreational marijuana,” Blanck said. “The reason for it is the state has not established regulations yet. We have to wait until we have those regulations before the town can establish their own regulations.

“This order would extend the moratorium for another six months, and hopefully by that time we will have some state regulations in place where the ordinance committee can at that time establish their own ordinances for any businesses in Standish.”

One of the only additional comments from the Standish council on the subject came in the form of a question from Councilor Greg Sirpis, who asked if medical marijuana establishments were allowed under the temporary ban. 

“The order says for recreation, so does that mean somebody could open up a medicinal business for marijuana in town?”

Council Chairman Steve Nesbitt said those regulations are already in place. Standish zoning regulations currently allow for, but set restrictions on, medical marijuana facilities. 

No one from the public spoke on the moratorium extension in Standish. The measure to extend the temporary ban on retail marijuana establishments and social clubs was unanimously passed 7-0. 

Windham’s ban was also passed unanimously 7-0 Tuesday night without any debate from the public or council members. 

While the successful referendum on Question 1 legalized recreational marijuana in Maine, it also gives municipalities the authority to draft local ordinances that limit – or even prohibit all together – the number of marijuana businesses that can operate within their town.

The text of the new law passed by voters, the Marijuana Legalization Act, says that “a municipality may regulate the number of retail marijuana stores and the location and operation of retail marijuana establishments and retail marijuana social clubs and may prohibit the operation of retail marijuana establishments and retail marijuana social clubs within its jurisdiction.”

The Town of Gray previously extended its moratorium in March. 

Matt Junker can be reached at 781-3661 ext. 123 or [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter: @MattJunker.

The Standish Town Council voted unanimously April 25 to extend its temporary ban on marijuana retail stores and social clubs.